Public Safety
RSSPublic safety in Alaska is the network of law enforcement, fire and emergency medical services that protect the state's communities. It covers Alaska State Troopers, municipal and village police, fire departments and village public safety officers.
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Week of Sep 14
Inmate accused of assaulting officer at Fairbanks Correctional Center
An inmate at Fairbanks Correctional Center assaulted a correctional officer early Sunday, and troopers forwarded charges against her.
by Alaska News1mo ago1 min read
Search continues for missing Akiachak boater Jonathan Lomack
Jonathan Lomack, 59, of Akiachak, has been missing on the Kuskokwim River since Tuesday night, with his boat found empty and search crews from three communities now in their third day looking for him.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Two dead in Piper Cub crash near Nabesna, troopers say
Two people died when a Piper Cub crashed shortly after takeoff from a dirt airstrip near Nabesna in Interior Alaska on Thursday evening, Sept. 17.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Troopers say Fairbanks driver hit 90 mph before DUI arrest
Troopers arrested a driver who ran lights through Fairbanks above 90 mph. City police, meanwhile, spent $593 of a $278,000 DUI enforcement budget.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Alaska leads the country in elder fraud complaints
Alaska led the country per capita in elder fraud complaints in 2024. Older Alaskans lost $8.17 million, most of it to fake tech support calls.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Troopers find missing hunter near Tanana after weather grounded search a day
Alaska Wildlife Troopers found a missing hunter near Tanana on Wednesday after weather grounded the search a day earlier. He declined medical treatment and returned to camp.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
A free crisis intervention course in Wasilla has 30 seats next month
Thirty free seats in a crisis intervention course in Wasilla next month, and Mat-Su officers and first responders get first crack at all of them.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Anchorage delays surveillance rules as sponsors and mayor remain divided
Anchorage delayed its surveillance ordinance to Oct. 20. The crime center keeps operating under police policy while lawmakers reconcile rival rules.
by Alaska News1mo ago2 min read
More from Public Safety
Chugiak fire chief to ask voters this spring for first mill rate increase since 2005
Chugiak's fire calls are up 27 percent, and the chief says it is not fires driving it. It is people without a doctor calling an ambulance instead.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Kaktovik's do-not-drink notice stays until sharper lab results arrive
Kaktovik's do-not-drink order is still in place. The North Tank starts refilling Friday, and new samples with finer detection limits are at the lab.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
After the tow trucks left, one family could reach their own land
Fifty vehicles came off a half-mile of road in Big Lake. One family could finally drive to their own property. It took $42,000 and eleven dumpsters.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Two missing after boat overturns near Bethel
Two people are missing after a boat overturned near Bethel on Tuesday afternoon. Search and rescue efforts are ongoing.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Kodiak Island Borough warns of wire transfer scam targeting zoning applicants
Scammers are posing as Kodiak zoning officials and demanding wire transfers. Nobody in history has ever been this eager to collect a permit fee.
by Alaska News1mo ago1 min read
Alaska joins the EMS compact Sunday, with several steps still required
Alaska joins the EMS compact on Sunday, but nobody can just show up and start working. The state is not in the national database yet either.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Fairbanks woman, 68, fell from horse into Wood River and died; cause under investigation
Debra Waugaman Curnow, 68, of Fairbanks died Monday after falling from her horse while crossing the Wood River near Snow Mountain Gulch.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Park Service warns of ice collapse and tsunami waves at Aialik Glacier
National Park Service warns that unstable ice at Aialik Glacier terminus in Kenai Fjords can collapse without warning and trigger tsunami waves capable of causing severe injury or death.
by Maggie AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Coming up
Fairbanks North Star Borough Assembly Regional Emergency Services Advisory Committee
Mona Lisa Drexler Assembly Chambers, Juanita Helms Administration Center, 907 Terminal Street, Fairbanks, AK
Meeting
Public Safety Careers Event
Community event
Alaska Police Standards Council Meeting
Meeting
Basic Handgun Class
Class
Cordova City Council E911 Surcharge Implementation
Public notice
About Public Safety
Public safety in Alaska takes in the law enforcement, fire, emergency medical and rescue services that protect its communities. It includes the Alaska State Troopers, municipal police, village public safety officers, fire departments, and search and rescue by the Coast Guard and the Alaska Air National Guard.
Highway crashes and closures, searches for missing people and boaters, structure fires and rescues in remote villages recur across the state. Local governments decide on police funding, including state grants for units that target impaired driving and street racing, as well as rules for police surveillance and ambulance fees.
Public safety overlaps closely with crime, government and the courts. In rural Alaska, troopers and village public safety officers respond to emergencies in villages, while Coast Guard cutters patrol the Arctic and the Bering Sea.
More from Public Safety
Juneau aging commission chair asks Assembly to fix or cancel paratransit contract
Juneau seniors and wheelchair riders are missing paratransit pickups under Ground Transportation Solutions. The aging commission chair asked the Assembly to fix or cancel the contract before winter.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Search resumes on Kasilof River for man missing after boat overturns
A 67-year-old Kasilof man is missing after his boat overturned on the Kasilof River Sunday. The search resumed Monday by air, boat and on foot.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
APD's new drone notice leaves annual-report questions unanswered
APD disclosed a drone at Sunday's standoff, but the five-line notice leaves the warrant and footage questions missing from its annual report
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
Anchorage police shoot carjacking suspect after East 37th Avenue standoff
Anchorage police say the man officers shot on East 37th Avenue had, hours earlier, pistol-whipped an older man unconscious and stolen his truck.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min read
South Anchorage council asks state and city for interim school-route safety projects
Fifteen pedestrians were killed on Alaska roads last year, the highest rate in a decade. One Anchorage council is asking for whatever can be done fast.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago2 min readFrom 
Crews dig out buried hotspot near Tok home as Mukluk Fire hits 70% containment
Weeks after the Mukluk Fire, crews dug a still-smoldering log out of the ground near a Tok home, and fire managers expect more buried heat.
by Maggie AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
Anchorage police report eighth officer-involved shooting of 2026 in two sentences
An Anchorage officer was in a shooting on East 37th Avenue, and the department's entire account is two sentences that don't say whether anyone was hit.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read
Week of Sep 7
Troopers airlift injured boater from Cosna River after capsizing en route to air ambulance
Alaska State Troopers airlifted an injured boater from the Cosna River on Sunday after the boat capsized while heading to an air ambulance pickup.
by Walter AlaskaNews1mo ago1 min read
Troopers arrest Fairbanks driver on DUI charge after Steese Highway stop
DUI arrest in the north
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
Mayor's substitute puts Anchorage's surveillance network before the Assembly Tuesday
Anchorage assembled cameras, drones, plate readers and commercial-data tools before writing enforceable rules for how police may use them.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago9 min readFrom 
Soldotna man arrested on DUI and weapons charges after Ninilchik traffic stop
A Soldotna man was arrested after Alaska State Troopers found his green SUV near Ninilchik following REDDI calls and watched it speeding and swerving on the Sterling Highway.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
Cantwell's volunteer EMS model is straining, Denali Borough officials say
Cantwell's volunteer EMS model is straining as recruiting falters, and Denali Borough officials are weighing whether taxes could fund year-round coverage.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min readFrom 
Craig council backs speed humps, ties removal to studded tire dates
Craig City Council voted to keep speed humps on Tanner Crab Court and Teenage Street, removing them each fall when the state lifts its studded tire ban.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min readFrom 
An Anchorage officer killed a woman downtown, by the department's account
An Anchorage officer shot and killed a woman at a downtown apartment Aug. 18. The account comes almost entirely from the police chief.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min readFrom 
Air Guard crew rescues two pilots in separate crashes near Palmer and Skwentna
An Alaska Air National Guard helicopter crew rescued two pilots from separate crashes near Palmer and Skwentna on Thursday, flying both to an Anchorage hospital.
by Alaska News2mo ago1 min read
Wind topples two dozen trees onto Tok's power lines, stalling fire recovery
Winds knocked more than two dozen trees onto Tok's power lines Wednesday, some outside the burn scar, cutting power and stalling the Mukluk Fire recovery.
by Maggie AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read
Alaska has reviewed 22 police shootings since 2024 and charged no one
Alaska prosecutors have reviewed at least 22 police shootings since 2024 and charged no officer. The record clears the officer every time.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago3 min readFrom 
Troopers arrest Anchorage man after 85 mph pursuit ends in Wasilla crash
Alaska State Troopers arrested Luke Debaere, 23, after he fled a traffic stop on the Parks Highway and crashed into trees in Wasilla, reaching 85 mph through residential areas.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read
Ninth Circuit says tribal law cannot shield employees from federal civil rights suits
A federal appeals court ruled tribal governments cannot shield their own employees from civil rights lawsuits by writing immunity into tribal code.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago3 min read
Troopers identify two Savoonga men dead after capsizing near St. Lawrence Island
Two Savoonga men died when their boat capsized off St. Lawrence Island. A 15-year-old survived by clinging to the overturned hull until a search crew found him.
by Maggie AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min readFrom 
Anchorage police seek help finding Allison Wilson, 41, missing since Thursday morning
Anchorage police are asking for help finding Allison Wilson, 41, who didn't return from her shift Thursday. She drives a maroon Subaru with front-end damage.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
Juneau aging commission to vote Sept. 15 on demanding paratransit fix or new contractor
Juneau's paratransit riders have gone ten months without service that meets the contract, the chair of the city's aging commission says.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read
Juneau driver, 33, dies in Hyer Road crash in Palmer
A Juneau driver died Thursday morning after his vehicle became airborne over the Hyer underpass in Palmer and struck a concrete support.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
A remote Alaska village's firefighting enterprise lands more federal work
A firefighting company owned by the remote village of Nulato landed more federal fire work — part of a tribal enterprise that's grown to 200-plus local jobs.
by Maggie AlaskaNews2mo ago2 min read
