Associated Press

A ground and aerial search is underway for a missing 36-year-old Nome man. Alaska State Troopers say they were notified Monday morning after Joseph Balderas failed to show up for work. State officials say Balderas works as a law clerk for the Alaska court system in Nome. Troopers say Balderas’ vehicle was found around the…

A shooting Sunday afternoon at a midtown Anchorage park left a man with a bullet wound to his back. Anchorage police say a 39-year-old man just before 2:30 p.m. was sitting on a bench with a woman in Arctic Benson Park on west 31st Avenue. A man walked up and the men exchanged words. Police…

Alaska State Troopers have released the name of a Florida man killed last week in a traffic crash on a southeast Alaska island. Trooper say 23-year-old Jeffery Turner of Tampa Bay died in the crash in Hoonah. A Juneau man, 24-year-old Dylan Wiard, was injured in the crash. Hoonah police just before 5:30 a.m. Friday…

Firefighters in Alaska have been busy at work after thousands of recorded lightning strikes sparked about 20 fires across the state. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reports that more than 8,000 lightning strikes were reported in the state on Saturday, and at least 8,300 through Sunday evening. Alaska Division of Forestry spokesman Tim Mowry says the…

Sitka schools are ending this academic year with a $200,000 surplus. KCAW-FM reports district administrators decided to save half the surplus while the other half helps pay for arts curriculum. District business manager Cassee Olin told Sitka School board members in June that savings on utilities and heating fuel were the most significant. Some areas…

An investigation into a floatplane crash that killed 8 sightseers and the pilot about a year ago is nearly finished. National Transportation Safety Board Alaska Chief Clint Johnson told the Ketchikan Daily News that officials are compiling information before releasing a final report. The federal agency sent investigators to the site near Ketchikan where visibility…