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Vol. 49, Issue 192
In the news Anchorage man and 2 pets die in motor home fire ANCHORAGE — A man and two pets have died in an early morning fire in Alaska that destroyed a motor home. The Anchorage Daily News reported Sunday that firefighters found the man and two animals dead inside the motor home in Anchorage. The Anchorage Fire Department responded to 911 reports of the fire at 1:16 a.m. Sunday. The victim was not immediately identified and his body was sent to the State Medical Examiner Office. Officials could not say what type of animals died. A fire official said Sunday that investigators were still trying to determine the fire’s cause, but it “does not appear suspicious.” Officials say that at its peak, 12 area firefighting units worked to put out the blaze. The motor home was parked at Rally Automotive Repair in South Anchorage.
Officials fear tuberculosis spread at religious event BETHEL — Attendees at an Alaska religious meeting may have been exposed to tuberculosis. KYUK-AM reported Friday that a person who was diagnosed with an active case of the disease participated in the New Fire Bethel Ministry revival April 12-14. Alaska Public Health and Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation officials say the person attended all three days of the event in western Alaska. Tuberculosis bacterium, which usually attacks the lungs, can spread easily and symptoms are not obvious, often leaving people unaware they carry it. An official says there were up to a hundred people at the event each day who could have been exposed. An official says Alaska has the highest rate of tuberculosis in the nation, but the state’s strain is not resistant to medication and can be treated and cured. — Associated Press
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Lawmakers face deadline, decisions By BECKY BOHRER Associated Press
JUNEAU — It’s crunch time for Alaska lawmakers, who face a looming deadline to complete their session and decide some of its thorniest issues. Wednesday will mark the 121st day of the regular session, the constitutional limit, though a 10-day extension is allowable. Lawmakers last month blew past a 90day voter-approved session limit, which wasn’t seen as realistic given Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s budget hadn’t been released until a month into session and the House didn’t organize until around the same time. Legislative leaders hope to finish by Wednesday but lawmakers must agree on the budget, a dividend amount for residents this year from Alaska’s oil-wealth fund, the Alaska Permanent Fund, and a sprawling crime
Alaska House and Senate negotiators meet for a conference committee on the state operating budget on Monday in Juneau. The Legislature is trying to finish its work with a deadline for doing so looming. (AP Photo/Becky Bohrer)
bill. “Can we get there?” House Majority Leader Steve Thompson said of the Wednesday target. “It’s going to be hard.”
Senate President Cathy Giessel said Wednesday was a realistic target, “but then maybe I’m overly optimistic.” “These are big deci-
sions that honestly have been put off for a long time,” she said. The last several years have been marked by fights over how to ad-
dress a persistent budget deficit and a strong reliance on savings to fill the gap. Amid a continued drawdown of savings and disagreement over taxes, lawmakers last year began using permanent fund earnings — the fund long used to pay annual dividends to residents — to help pay for government. They also sought to limit what can be withdrawn for government expenses and the dividend. The longstanding formula for calculating the dividend hasn’t been followed the last three years, and some lawmakers say it’s outdated and unsustainable. Others contend that until the law is changed, the calculation should be followed. Paying a full dividend this year would cost $1.9 billion. The Senate version of the budget, which included a full dividend, left a $1.2 billion gap that would need to be filled. See FACE, page A2
NTSB to investigate after deadly plane crash By Rachel D’Oro And Mark Thiessen Associated Press
ANCHORAGE — A team of federal accident investigators is expected to arrive in Alaska on Tuesday to try to piece together what caused a deadly midair collision between two sightseeing planes. Four people were killed after the floatplanes carrying cruise ship tourists collided Monday near the Southeast Alaska town of Ketchikan, the Coast Guard said. Two others were missing, said Petty Officer Jon-Paul Rios, a Coast Guard spokesman. The Washington, D.C.based investigative team from the National Transpor- Emergency response crews transport an injured passenger to an ambulance at the tation Safety Board is ex- George Inlet Lodge docks, Monday, in Ketchikan. The passenger was from one of two pected to arrive in Ketchikan floatplanes reported down in George Inlet early Monday afternoon and was dropped Tuesday afternoon, agency off by a U.S. Coast Guard 45-foot response boat. (Photo by Dustin Safranek/Ketspokesman Peter Knudson chikan Daily News via AP) said. He said board member stances, Federal Aviation email to The Associated Jennifer Homendy also is gates major accidents. The floatplanes collided Administration spokesman Press. Floatplanes have traveling with the so-called “Go Team,” which investi- under unknown circum- Allen Kenitzer said in an pontoons mounted under
the fuselage so they can land on water. The passengers were from the cruise ship Royal Princess and were on sightseeing flights, one of which was operated by flightseeing company Taquan Air. Eleven people were inside Taquan’s single-engine de Havilland Otter DHC3 when it went down as it returned from Misty Fjords National Monument, which is part of the Tongass National Forest, the nation’s largest. Ten people were taken to a Ketchikan hospital. All patients were in fair or good condition, according to Marty West, a spokeswoman for PeaceHealth Ketchikan Medical Center. Three people who died were among five people aboard the second plane, a single-engine de Havilland DHC-2 Beaver, according to Coast Guard Lt. Brian Dykens. It’s unclear which See CRASH, page A2
Prosecutor to examine Russia probe origins By MICHAEL BALSAMO Associated Press
WASHINGTON — Attorney General William Barr has appointed a U.S. attorney to examine the origins of the Russia investigation and determine
if intelligence collection involving the Trump campaign was “lawful and appropriate,” a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press on Monday. Barr appointed John Durham, the U.S. attorney
in Connecticut, to conduct the inquiry, the person said. The person could not discuss the matter publicly and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity. Durham’s appointment comes about a month after Barr told members of Con-
Kenai man charged with burglary, assault following reports of break-ins By Brian Mazurek Peninsula Clarion
A Kenai man has been charged with burglary, theft and assault after allegedly breaking into several businesses, according to two criminal complaints filed at the Kenai Courthouse on May 7. Grayden Mendenhall, 24, of Kenai, is accused of breaking into Carquest, Pot of Gold Pull Tabs and Credit Union 1 in Soldotna, and assault-
ing an employee of the Holiday Gas Station in Soldotna on May 5. Soldotna Police received separate reports of overnight break-ins at the Soldotna businesses, according to the complaint. On May 5, while a Soldotna Police officer was investigating the scene at Carquest, a white Chevy pickup was seen by a State Trooper leaving the parking lot of Carquest. The Soldotna officer found the truck about a mile down
the Sterling Highway at the Holiday Gas Station in Soldotna and found Mendenhall in a physical confrontation with the gas station employee, police reported. Mendenhall had allegedly attempted to steal a Juul e-cigarette and Juul pod kit after his debit card was declined, and the employee tried to stop Mendenhall from leaving with the stolen goods. The police officer subdued Mendenhall See BREAK, page A3
gress he believed “spying did occur” on the Trump campaign in 2016. He later said he didn’t mean anything pejorative and was gathering a team to look into the origins of the special counsel’s investigation.
Barr provided no details about what “spying” may have taken place but appeared to be alluding to a surveillance warrant the FBI obtained on a former Trump associate, Carter Page, and the FBI’s use of See PROBE, page A2
Last man in missing mountain hiking group found safe FAIRBANKS (AP) — A man who became lost on an Alaska mountain trail has been safely located by searchers, authorities said. Logan Holmer, 26, of Missouri, was among four hikers on Far Mountain Trail Thursday who were reported overdue, The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reported Saturday. Searchers located Holmer in good condition on a ridge around 4 p.m. Saturday, police said. The Far Mountain Trail east of Chena Hot Springs is a short, steep walk of 5 miles
roundtrip and an elevation change of 3,000 feet, according to a travel book cited by the newspaper. Alaska State Troopers, Alaska Wildlife Troopers, Wilderness Search and Rescue, Civil Air Patrol, Alaska State Park Rangers and PAWS search dog teams began searching for Holmer after he was reported missing. The other three hikers in his party returned to the Chena Hot Springs Resort 61 miles east of Fairbanks, but Holmer remained missing until Saturday, police said.