KTOO News Update KTOO Public Media

In this newscast: An electric pole in Ketchikan caught fire late last month and sent Ketchikan, Petersburg, and Wrangell into a blackout. The three grids - which are interconnected - went dark for a few hours. That smoldering electric pole was symptomatic of a much larger, decades-long issue facing Ketchikan Public Utilities; Tongass Voices: Kanik Corinne James on being uplifted by Indigenous women in the art world

In this newscast: AKPM's Eric Stone reports on the dozens of bills passed as lawmakers concluded their work this legislative session; Injured commercial fishermen and boat owners in Alaska will now be able to access higher insurance reimbursements, thanks to a senate bill passed by lawmakers; A bill passed by the legislature addresses the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous People in the state. 

An affordable housing project built specifically for people in recovery from substance misuse received funding support from the Juneau Assembly this week; KTOO reporter Anna Canny sought out where ravens roost in Juneau in this week's Curious Juneau episode; A 91-year-old cruise tourist is suing the Ketchikan Borough for negligence after his mobility scooter tipped over on a public bus. 

In this newscast: Ketchikan community members are pushing back against the planned construction of a market downtown which would feature two totem poles made by a non-Native Minnesota artist with a checkered past; A look at what's planned for this years Little Norway Festival in Petersburg

In this newscast: The Juneau Assembly approved the school district's more than $85 million budget for next school year last night; Budget negotiators in the Alaska Legislature have settled on the amount of this year's Permanent Fund dividend and energy relief check; Since statehood, Alaska has not had the death penalty, but the men who were last executed here shouldn't be forgotten

In this newscast: Alaska lawmakers passed a bill last week that adds several Indigenous languages to Alaska’s official list of languages; One People Canoe Society visited Wrangell in early spring to teach residents how to make traditional Lingít paddles. This class was the kickoff for the Journey to Celebration, where a group of paddlers will canoe from Wrangell to Juneau at the end of May and early June; Tongass Voices: Rebecca Hsieh on intertwining community and art with Head in the Clouds Collective