Public safety

The intersection of Bridge Access Road and Kalifornsky Beach Road is covered with blowing snow on Friday in Kenai. A winter storm that brought more than a foot of snow to some areas of the peninsula made for hazardous driving conditions over the weekend. (Photo by Erin Thompson/Peninsula Clarion)

Snow finally arrives, brings poor driving conditions

The Kenai Peninsula saw the first big snowfall of the season this past weekend, with snow totaling over a foot in some areas, leaving drivers… Continue reading

 

State rebrands in an effort to recruit more troopers

Alaska needs more troopers, and public safety officials are ramping up efforts to fill the positions. On Wednesday, Alaska State Troopers unveiled a new logo… Continue reading

 

Sgt. Daniel Cox congratulates a Kenai Peninsula Youth Court attorney at swearing-in ceremonies at the Homer Courthouse in December 2016. (Photo by Michael Armstrong, Homer News)

Nikolaevsk man assaulted trooper before being shot, state troopers say

Alaska State Troopers on Tuesday identified the troopers involved in a fatal shooting last Saturday of a Nikolaevsk man. In a press release, troopers said… Continue reading

 

Matt Quiner of the Nikiski Fire Department checks his gear before dropping through a hole in the ice covering Island Lake as part of a training drill Friday, March 9, 2018 in Nikiski, Alaska. The Nikiski Fire Department is working on bringing all the members of its ice diving team up to proper certifications. To attain full certifications, divers have to clock a number of hours in the water, including practicing beneath the ice. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Nikiski Fire trains up on ice diving

The old saying goes that there’s no bad conditions, only bad gear. The Nikiski Fire Department is testing exactly how far that goes with some… Continue reading

Matt Quiner of the Nikiski Fire Department checks his gear before dropping through a hole in the ice covering Island Lake as part of a training drill Friday, March 9, 2018 in Nikiski, Alaska. The Nikiski Fire Department is working on bringing all the members of its ice diving team up to proper certifications. To attain full certifications, divers have to clock a number of hours in the water, including practicing beneath the ice. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)
There are four different options to relocate a 15-mile stretch of the Sterling Highway in order to avoid Cooper Landing including the Juneau Creek Alternative, which Governor Bill Walker and the Alaska congressional delegation prefer, and the G-South Alternative, which is the federal governments choice route. (Photo courtesy of Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities)

Walker, congressional delegation advocate for northern Cooper Landing bypass route

Gov. Bill Walker and Alaska’s congressional delegation are asking for a resolution in the long-running dispute on how to build a 15-mile bypass of a… Continue reading

There are four different options to relocate a 15-mile stretch of the Sterling Highway in order to avoid Cooper Landing including the Juneau Creek Alternative, which Governor Bill Walker and the Alaska congressional delegation prefer, and the G-South Alternative, which is the federal governments choice route. (Photo courtesy of Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities)

Rotary Park reopens after black bear sighting

The 52-acre Rotary Park on Funny River Road in Soldotna is open again. The park reopened Thursday after being temporarily closed due to bear activity.… Continue reading

Two Kenai firefighters clean up a 1987 Volkswagen Westfallia camper van that caught fire Thursday, July 13, 2017 on the south beach in Kenai, Alaska. No one was in the van when it burnt, and there were no injuries. (Photo by Ben Boettger/Peninsula Clarion)

Kenai Fire extinguishes vehicle blaze on beach

Members of the Kenai Fire Department made a trip to the beach Thursday night to extinguish a camper that had caught fire. A crew was… Continue reading

Two Kenai firefighters clean up a 1987 Volkswagen Westfallia camper van that caught fire Thursday, July 13, 2017 on the south beach in Kenai, Alaska. No one was in the van when it burnt, and there were no injuries. (Photo by Ben Boettger/Peninsula Clarion)

Black bears prompt Rotary Park closing

Soldotna’s 52-acre Rotary Park located along Funny River Road is temporarily closed due to black bear activity. Soldotna Parks and Recreation Director Andrew Carmichael said… Continue reading

A dipnetter reaches to retrieve a sockeye salmon caught in her net on the Kenai Beach on Tuesday, July 11, 2017 in Kenai, Alaska. Tuesday was the second day of the Kenai River personal-use dipnet fishery, which will remain open until July 31. The fishery was relatively quiet Tuesday, with a dipnetter hauling in a fish every once in awhile, and unlike many July weekends, there was plenty of room in the water for more participants. Sockeye salmon have been relatively slow to enter the Kenai this year, with about 94,885 past the Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s sonar as of Monday, significantly less than in 2016 but ahead of years like 2013, 2012 and 2011, according to Fish and Game data. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Kenai Police prepared for safe dipnet season

As business and traffic ramps up in Kenai as thousands of dipnetters arrive from all over the state, members of the Kenai Police Department find… Continue reading

A dipnetter reaches to retrieve a sockeye salmon caught in her net on the Kenai Beach on Tuesday, July 11, 2017 in Kenai, Alaska. Tuesday was the second day of the Kenai River personal-use dipnet fishery, which will remain open until July 31. The fishery was relatively quiet Tuesday, with a dipnetter hauling in a fish every once in awhile, and unlike many July weekends, there was plenty of room in the water for more participants. Sockeye salmon have been relatively slow to enter the Kenai this year, with about 94,885 past the Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s sonar as of Monday, significantly less than in 2016 but ahead of years like 2013, 2012 and 2011, according to Fish and Game data. (Photo by Elizabeth Earl/Peninsula Clarion)

Kenai officers save life with newly acquired overdose-reducing drug

Members of the Kenai Police Department saved a life for the first time using the overdose-reducing drug Naloxone, known by the commercial name Narcan, as… Continue reading

The Swan Lake wildfire burns in the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge as seen from the air June 15, 2017 near Sterling, Alaska. The 1,016-acre fire started by lightning will continue to be monitored, though it is not threatening any residents and has been downgraded in intensity. (Photo courtesy Tim Mowry, Alaska Division of Forestry)

East Fork fire intensity downgraded, firefighters still monitoring

Firefighters are scaling back their work on the East Fork wildland fire burning in the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge as it is not posing any… Continue reading

The Swan Lake wildfire burns in the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge as seen from the air June 15, 2017 near Sterling, Alaska. The 1,016-acre fire started by lightning will continue to be monitored, though it is not threatening any residents and has been downgraded in intensity. (Photo courtesy Tim Mowry, Alaska Division of Forestry)

Kenai man arrested after alleged shooting

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to correct details about the victim, who declined treatment by the Kenai Fire Department. A Kenai man has… Continue reading

On call: CES welcomes four new full-time members

Meet the newest friendly neighborhood firefighters: Becca Satathite, Holly Behrens, Luke Michael and Gunnar Romatz all rose from volunteers to full-time employees together and are… Continue reading

Arizona resident Nathan Lieber, a trauma amputee actor, looks at his own fake injuries casued by a simulated meth lab explosion while two local law enforement and emergency medical services personnel tend to him during a training drill Saturday, May 20, 2017 at the North Peninsula Recreation Center in Nikiski, Alaska. Lieber works for JTM Training Group, based out of Las Vegas, which travels to Alaska every year to conduct several multi-day training courses for members of law enforcement, corrections and medical first responders to practice working together in emergencies that turn violent. (Megan Pacer/Peninsula Clarion)

Peninsula law enforcement, first responders get trained on violent calls

“Julie, I brought my extra blood and Visqueen… if you want a puddle,” said Alaska Department of Health and Social Services employee Todd Lecours as… Continue reading

Arizona resident Nathan Lieber, a trauma amputee actor, looks at his own fake injuries casued by a simulated meth lab explosion while two local law enforement and emergency medical services personnel tend to him during a training drill Saturday, May 20, 2017 at the North Peninsula Recreation Center in Nikiski, Alaska. Lieber works for JTM Training Group, based out of Las Vegas, which travels to Alaska every year to conduct several multi-day training courses for members of law enforcement, corrections and medical first responders to practice working together in emergencies that turn violent. (Megan Pacer/Peninsula Clarion)

Moderate quake shakes peninsula

Information is still being processed on a moderate earthquake that shook up the Kenai Peninsula Saturday night. The Alaska Earthquake Center noted a quake with… Continue reading

This photo taken July 3, 2015 shows cars lined up on the Seward Highway along the Turnagain Arm in after a fatal accident in which a trooper vehicle struck and killed a motorcyclist it was pursuing closed the highway for several hours. Troopers have reduced their coverage of a stretch from about mile 75 of that highway to south of McHugh Creek due to budget cuts. (Ben Boettger/Peninsula Clarion)

Agencies struggle to fill Seward Highway gap left by trooper withdrawal

Drivers on the Seward Highway between McHugh Creek and the Turnagain Pass are facing a potential law enforcement coverage gap as Alaska State Troopers withdraw… Continue reading

This photo taken July 3, 2015 shows cars lined up on the Seward Highway along the Turnagain Arm in after a fatal accident in which a trooper vehicle struck and killed a motorcyclist it was pursuing closed the highway for several hours. Troopers have reduced their coverage of a stretch from about mile 75 of that highway to south of McHugh Creek due to budget cuts. (Ben Boettger/Peninsula Clarion)

Kenai may extend firework usage

Whether to expand sale and use of fireworks will be tackled on the Kenai City Council’s Wednesday night agenda. Kenai allows residents to shoot off… Continue reading

Use caution with New Year’s fireworks

As in years past, the sky over Kenai will likely be lit with fireworks as 2016 ends on Saturday night. The cheerful boom and sparkle… Continue reading

Steven Jacob, 19, from the Kuskokwim Learning Academy, practices using the jaws of life on a car with the help of instructor Bryan Crisp of the Nikiski Fire Department (right) on Thursday, April 20, 2017 at the department’s Station No. 2 in Nikiski, Alaska. Jacob and several other Western Alaska students spent the week getting basic firefighter training through Excel Alaska’s Camp Kick Ash. (Megan Pacer/Peninsula Clarion)

Sparking an interest: Western Alaska students get schooled in firefighting skills camp

Most people won’t ever see the jaws of life in action during an accident, let alone wield the machine themselves, but that’s exactly what 15… Continue reading

Steven Jacob, 19, from the Kuskokwim Learning Academy, practices using the jaws of life on a car with the help of instructor Bryan Crisp of the Nikiski Fire Department (right) on Thursday, April 20, 2017 at the department’s Station No. 2 in Nikiski, Alaska. Jacob and several other Western Alaska students spent the week getting basic firefighter training through Excel Alaska’s Camp Kick Ash. (Megan Pacer/Peninsula Clarion)

No injuries in two-car accident on Kenai Spur

No injuries in Kenai collision A two-car accident at the intersection of Kenai’s Main Street Loop Road and the Kenai Spur Highway drew responders from… Continue reading