Rashah McChesney

A Juneau woman has died of COVID-19 at Bartlett Regional Hospital. 

She was in her 60s and died early Tuesday morning, according to a hospital media release. 

This is the first death related to COVID-19 at Juneau’s city hospital. There are currently six people with COVID-19 being treated at Bartlett. Since March, staff have treated 23 patients with the virus; most of them have been discharged. 

The city has had a surge in cases in recent weeks driven partially by an outbreak among Juneau’s bar staff and one among area residents who are homeless. 

According to city data, there are currently 45 active cases of COVID-19 among Juneau residents. 

In the last two weeks, most of the city’s newly identified cases have been attributed to community spread. That means they can’t be linked to another person who has also tested positive for the virus and could imply that the person has been exposed by someone who is undiagnosed or doesn’t know they’re sick with the virus. 

A record-high number of Alaskans tested positive for COVID-19 on Friday. 

State health officials reported that 230 Alaskans and two-nonresidents across 29 communities now have the virus. 

Most of the people who are newly sickened are Anchorage residents, 128 of them tested positive. But there is also a large, new cluster of 25 in Fairbanks.

To date, more than 9,400 Alaskans have tested positive for the virus both in and out of state. Most of them have recovered, 60 have died. 

For more than two weeks, daily case numbers have hit triple digits.

State health officials reported that Anchorage is hitting its limit in inpatient and ICU beds, though they are occupied primarily by patients who do not have COVID-19. Interior Alaska has 11 inpatient beds available. 

According to a media release from the Department of Health and Social Services 44 people are currently in the hospital with COVID-19 and another 22 are waiting on test results – five of them are on ventilators. The state’s dashboard is currently showing incorrect hospitalization numbers but will be corrected soon, according to the release.

And, while case counts have been skyrocketing in recent weeks – hospitals are not sounding any alarms. 

Alaska State Hospital and Nursing Home Association Chief Executive Jared Kosin said earlier this week that it’s normal for hospitals to get busier this time of year.  But, he also said that it takes time for people to get seriously ill or need medical treatment once they’ve been diagnosed with COVID-19.

Correction: A previous version of this story had an incorrect figure for the total number of cases, it is 232. And the state’s hospitalization dashboard was showing incorrect numbers for the amount of people who are currently in the hospital with COVID-19 or waiting on test results — it is 66. 

Juneau is closing the Mill Campground for the season. 

The city maintains the 20-site campground seasonally for people without homes. 

Deputy Parks and Recreation Director Michele Elfers said it closes every winter because the campground doesn’t have running water, sewer or electricity. In freezing temperatures, the city can’t light the area or keep water thawed.

There are also no shelters that could withstand snow and heavy winds, and Elfers said there aren’t enough staff to maintain the campground in winter. 

It will close on Oct. 15. The city wants everyone to have their belongings and food out by noon. 

People who don’t have homes to go to do have alternatives. The city has an emergency warming shelter at the Juneau Arts and Culture Center that will be open overnight through the fall and winter. It can hold up to 71 people with space for social distancing. 

There’s also the Glory Hall shelter, though it’s taking fewer people because of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The Mill campground should reopen next April.

Alaska Airlines is cutting nearly 450 flight attendants and others from its payroll while the company is borrowing more than $1.3 billion from the U.S. Treasury. 

The company announced in June that it would likely begin cutting jobs this month. Airlines are struggling with a steep drop in travel due to the COVID-19 pandemic. That decline drove another Alaska air carrier, the RavnAir Group, into bankruptcy. 

The Alaska Airlines layoffs are dwarfed by those at two other major carriers. American Airlines and United Airlines announced earlier this week that they will furlough a total of 32,000 workers. 

All three airlines are pushing for Congress and the White House to come to another deal on coronavirus relief that would include grants to airlines, including as much as another $25 billion that would pay airline workers for the next six months. 

A hunter has been killed by a grizzly bear in the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park Southeast of Fairbanks. 

According to a park press release, the hunter was on a 10-day moose hunt with a friend near the Chisana River drainage when he was mauled on Sunday. 

It’s the first time a bear mauling has been recorded in the park since it was established in 1980, according to the release. 

Park officials did not identify the hunter. 

This is a developing story and will be updated when new information becomes available.

Juneau’s Assembly will be taking public comment Monday on a plan to put up to $600,000 of the city’s CARES Act funds into child care programs. 

The plan is to put money into the Juneau School District’s RALLY program, a before — and after — school program, allowing for the parents of about 250 school-aged children to go to work. 

The money would also be used to help low-income families with tuition assistance for the RALLY program, which costs about $1240 per month. 

This is the latest proposal to come forward as the city continues to struggle with the lack of affordable childcare options. Before the pandemic, city officials identified a lack of affordable childcare as a key issue keeping new parents from working. And when COVID-19 hit, some child care centers shut down. Many have reopened but are taking fewer children.

They’ll also hold a public hearing on a plan to put $50,000 into the new Systemic Racism Review Committee. 

The Juneau Assembly meets at 7 p.m. The meeting will be broadcast KTOO Juneau 104.3 FM. Video will be available at this post, over Zoom or through the city’s Facebook Live feed.