Month: May 2026

When a wall of rock collapsed into Southeast Alaska’s Tracy Arm last August, it triggered one of the highest-reaching tsunamis ever recorded in the world. The event happened to be in a place heavily visited by cruise ships.

A study newly published in the journal Science describes its massive magnitude.

The landslide dumped 64 million cubic meters of debris into the water, triggering a megatsunami with an initial wave of 328 feet, or 100 meters, the study said. The tsunami pushed water as high as 1,580 feet, or 481 meters, up the slope on the opposite side of the fjord and, as it traveled to Tracy Arm’s mouth, stripped the surface of the mountain face to bare rock.

The tsunami had the second-highest slope run-up on record, with a height just below the record 1,730-foot run-up in Alaska’s Lituya Bay that was created in 1958 by an earthquake-generated slide.

Unlike the Lituya Bay event, the Tracy Arm slide had no connection to any earthquakes, even though it created its own seismic signal equivalent to a magnitude 5.4 quake.

Instead, the collapsed rock wall had been destabilized by the melt of the glacier that used to buttress it, coupled with rain. It is an example of a hazard that is becoming more prominent in coastal regions of Alaska that attract crowds of tourists.

“With fjord regions increasingly visited by cruise ships, and climate change making similar events more likely, this unanticipated, near-miss event highlights the growing risk from landslides and tsunamis in coastal environments,” said the study, which had coauthors from the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

No one was hurt in the Tracy Arm landslide and tsunami, a contrast with the 1958 earthquake and tsunami, which resulted in five deaths.

The only casualties from last year’s event were some material goods. A kayak and some other equipment that campers about 25 miles away from the landslide site were lost when the huge waves washed on the island where they had set up their tent – fortuitously, in the woods rather than directly on the beach.

The campers saw the results of the tsunami, and some boaters even farther away felt it raise the water level even as the tide was falling.

Alaskans were lucky to be left unscathed by the event, considering that Tracy Arm has long been a popular tourist and recreational destination, said study coauthor Ezgi Karasözen, a seismologist at UAF’s Alaska Earthquake Center and a study coauthor.

“It was a close call. I think we dodged a bullet here, because there were multiple cruise ships in the area the day before,” she said.

It helped that the landslide resulting in the tsunami happened at 5:26 a.m. on a rainy morning, when visitors were not in the area, Karasözen said.

“It’s the timing of the event that saved us all,” she said.

In the landslide’s aftermath, tour companies that used to ferry people to Tracy Arm to watch the calving glaciers there are now skipping the area.

Large cruise lines that previously listed Tracy Arm as a stop now show Endicott Arm, a fjord farther south, on their itineraries. Allen Marine Tours, historically the largest tourism operator in Tracy Arm, isn’t sailing there this year. Instead, its boats are traveling from Juneau to Endicott Arm, farther away from the capital city.

“To my knowledge, there is no cruise-related tourism activity in Tracy Arm this year, and I’m not aware of any commercial local operators in Tracy Arm this year,” said Liz Perry, director of Travel Juneau, the city’s tourism bureau.

Similar adjustments have been made by tour companies operating in Prince William Sound, about 100 miles east of Anchorage. They have swapped out different destinations for Barry Arm, a fjord where a mountain slope is already moving and is in danger of a massive, tsunami-generating collapse.

Karasözen said it makes sense for visitors to avoid Tracy Arm for now, as there are still portions of rock face that may be in perilous shape and could collapse in new tsunami-producing landslides.

But Tracy Arm and Barry Arm are not the only coastal Alaska areas with landslide and tsunami dangers, she said.

“There are many fjords in Alaska that have steep slopes, retreating glaciers and similar conditions, so it can produce these kinds of landslides, probably, and a tsunami. So in that sense, the hazard is not confined to a single location,” she said.

How to keep safe is a “difficult question,” she said. Avoiding coastal areas entirely may be unrealistic, given that they are the areas where people want to live and visit, she said.

The Alaska Earthquake Center is working on establishing a landslide early warning system to keep people safe even as they move around coastal areas.

Already, the center has created a landslide-detection system developed by Karasözen and Mike West, Alaska’s state seismologist. The system enables scientists to identify slides and possible tsunamis within a few minutes. It expanded the monitoring program established at heavily instrumented Barry Arm, a site considered to pose tsunami risks to the community of Whittier and to the many users of western Prince William Sound. That area of the sound is heavily trafficked by vessels of different kinds, including cargo ships, tour boats, fishing boats and recreational watercraft.

The Alaska Earthquake Center scientists’ intention is to create a system to warn people about landslides before they happen, something that does not yet exist in the United States.

The Tracy Arm event provides some information that would help in that effort, according to the Science study. For several days before the big landslide, there was “microseismicity,” or movements of magnitudes too small to be felt by people, the study said. And the shrinking of Tracy Arm’s Sawyer Glacier, along with the heavy late-summer rainfall, could be seen as precursors to a slide, the study said.

James Brooks contributed to this story from Juneau.

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The first month of the American war against Iran caused crude oil prices to skyrocket around the world, and the price of Alaska’s oil has risen particularly far.

That rise is making extra millions of dollars available for state services and the Permanent Fund dividend, even as it squeezes the finances of individual Alaskans.

In figures newly compiled by the Alaska Department of Revenue, the average price of a barrel of Alaska North Slope crude was $111.17 in April. 

That’s $8.70 higher than the average price of a barrel of Brent crude, a standard based on oil extracted from Europe’s North Sea. It was also $13.11 per barrel higher than the average price of West Texas Intermediate, a standard based on oil from America’s second-largest state.

“The differential is the largest monthly value since the year 2000 and may be the highest value in history,” said the Department of Revenue, referring to the gap between Brent and North Slope crude.

“The large premium is due to a tightness in the Pacific basin oil market, where ANS is traded. “Most mid-east crude oil is supply constrained and cannot reach major importers like China, Japan, India, and South Korea,” the department said by email. “Uncertainty about shipping and delivery is incentivizing refiners to pay a premium for available crude that does not transit areas with substantial security risks. Crude grades from the Americas are the safest option. Brent primarily trades in the Atlantic basin, where the impacts from the Iran war are not quite as pronounced on a barrel for barrel basis.”

The premium now being paid for Alaska crude will have a significant impact if it continues for months. 

Each increase in the average annual price of a barrel of ANS crude is worth roughly $30 million. The exact value varies, because the state collects different amounts of money at different price levels.

While more than half of the state’s general-purpose revenue now comes from the Alaska Permanent Fund’s investments, oil is still the No. 2 source of flexible spending money for the state, and prices — combined with production — cause the amount of available money to flex up and down each year.

Legislative budgeters write the state’s budget with an average crude price in mind for an entire fiscal year, from July 1 through June 30 of the following year.

In the current fiscal year, which ends June 30, the Department of Revenue expects prices to average $75.26 per barrel. 

Thanks in part to the Alaska premium, the average through May 5 was $75.71. Every day that prices stay above that level, the more unexpected money the state will receive.

The state Senate already has a plan for that extra money. The first $96 million would go to an “energy relief” payment that increases the amount of the 2026 Permanent Fund dividend. The next $111 million would be distributed to public schools, and anything above that would go into the state’s principal savings account, the Constitutional Budget Reserve.

While Alaska’s state treasury is receiving a boon from the high prices, legislators don’t expect it to last. In the fiscal year that starts July 1, they’re anticipating significantly lower average North Slope oil prices.

“The Senate operating budget, when combined with spending agreements for the capital budget, balances the budget on $73/barrel oil, with some money left over,” said Sen. Lyman Hoffman, D-Bethel and co-chair of the Senate Finance Committee, speaking about the Senate’s budget proposal on Wednesday.

“The (House’s draft) budget, when combined with spending agreements for the capital budget, has close to a $320 million deficit at $75 a barrel oil,” Hoffman said.

Staff for Rep. Andy Josephson, D-Anchorage and co-chair of the  HouseFinance Committee, said they believe that estimate is accurate. The House’s draft budget includes a Permanent Fund dividend of $1,500. The Senate’s proposed dividend is $1,150, including a $150 energy rebate.

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This article has been updated to better explain the fiscal impact of ANS price increases.

A group of Juneau residents linked arms around a small fire pit outside Elizabeth Peratrovich Hall on Tuesday evening, concluding a ceremony to honor lost loved ones and hold space for grief and healing. At the center, the fire burned cedar chips with dozens of names of those lost. 

May 5 is recognized as the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Peoples, recognizing the disproportionate rates of violence, murder and disappearance among Alaska Native and American Indian communities nationwide and globally.

The day highlights Alaska’s high rates of missing and murdered Indigenous people, particularly Alaska Native women and girls, the ongoing efforts and gaps in law enforcement response, and efforts to address violence prevention and justice for families. 

Marches and events were held in Anchorage, Fairbanks, Bethel, Nome, Juneau and across the country on Tuesday. 

In Juneau, the day was marked with dozens gathering for a rally and march through downtown, a dinner and panel discussion with community leaders, and a space for grieving for those who’ve lost loved ones or are still seeking answers from law enforcement on open investigations. 

A mother and daughter, Lyric and Melody Ashenfelter of Juneau, took a moment to rest on the curb after the march. They said it felt empowering to be a part of the demonstration, and want to see more events and public attention paid to the crisis of violence and missing Alaska Native people, especially Alaska Native women. 

“It was good to see the amount of people that showed up. It was powerful,” Melody Ashenfelter said. They both said they are always thinking of Lyric, who is 20, and her safety. “It’s on my mind, always being careful,” she said. 

During the march, demonstrators held signs to commemorate missing or murdered people, including Tracy Day, who went missing in 2019 in Juneau whose family is still searching for answers, and Benjamin “Benny” Stepetin, who went missing last June. At a dinner and panel discussion at Elizabeth Peratrovich Hall, a table displayed photos of more than a dozen people killed or missing going back to 1993.  

According to new FBI data released Tuesday, rates of Alaska Native or American Indian people reported missing declined slightly to 9,687 people nationwide in 2025. The majority were minors. Roughly 55% of the total were women, and 45% were men. 

In Alaska, the Department of Public Safety releases quarterly reports of missing people, but not annual reports. Numbers fluctuate as cases are resolved and people are found, officials said, but approximately one third of cases in 2025 involved Alaska Native people missing, while Alaska Native people represent roughly 16% of the state’s population.  

The non-profit Data for Indigenous Justice has established an independent database to provide updated case numbers and resources for family members. In 2025, the group reported adding 170 new names and counted the total number of documented MMIP cases in Alaska at more than 1,250 people. 

Alaska ranks fourth in the nation with the highest number of cases, and Anchorage has the third highest of all cities in the nation, according to a 2018 report. 

Paulette M. Moreno, vice president of the Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska, which helped organize the Juneau event, said each data point represents a life and someone’s family and community affected.

“These are relatives, our sisters, our daughters, our aunties and our family members. So this issue is not abstract. It’s not something that’s happening elsewhere, it’s something that’s happening in Alaska, in our communities,” she said. 

Alaska Native and American Indian women and girls experience disproportionately higher rates of violence, and are murdered at rates ten times the national average, according to federal data. 

Federal and state officials say addressing MMIP is a top priority

Also on Tuesday in Anchorage, federal officials and advocates gathered for a roundtable focused on MMIP hosted by Cook Inlet Tribal Council. Participants represented tribes, law enforcement agencies and the state and federal government. U.S. Republican Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan, as well as two Department of the Interior officials, Bryan Mercier, director of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and Billy Kirkland, assistant secretary for Indian Affairs, attended.

“We can’t lose momentum,” Murkowski said, and applauded the announcement of a new national Task Force to Combat Violent Crime in Indian Country. 

“We are here to work with the administration, hand in glove, on these initiatives to ensure that women in this state, women across the country, do not fear in their own homes,” Murkowski said. “So we have work to do, but we have many, many good and willing partners.”

Alaska Department of Public Safety Commissioner James Cockrell said the biggest barrier for state law enforcement response is timing, particularly in rural Alaska. “Getting to a place in time to either save the person or be able to do a good investigation, to hold the person accountable for their actions,” he said.

“So we need to continue to focus on prevention and really timing investigation, and we need people to help us,” he added. “We need people to step up and say, ‘this is what happened.’

Cockrell said growing the Village Public Safety Officer program has been an ongoing priority of the department, and he sees those officers as essential to be on the frontlines in responding to incidents. “Our goal is to have a VPSO in any village that wants a VPSO. Currently, we have VPSOs in 57 villages, and again, they’re the boots on the ground,” he said.  

Cockrell emphasized that investigations for missing people are most successful when launched quickly. “If you know somebody’s missing, tell somebody right away. Don’t wait 24 hours. Don’t wait 48 hours. We have to have information as quickly as possible. The more information we get, the better chances are we’ll find this person.”

Austin McDaniel, communications director with the department, said in an interview Wednesday that the department responds to missing persons investigations as homicides until they are proven otherwise. “So that’s certainly our priority, is aggressively and quickly investigating new homicides that come in regardless of the area of the state or the race or gender of the person involved,” he said. 

McDaniel said the state is focused on investigating both new cases and unresolved cases, or cold cases. He said the state has five investigators, including four focused on MMIP cases. He said those investigations include new uses of forensic science, like DNA testing, and also rely on new information or witnesses coming forward.

Following legislative action in 2025, Alaska established a new nine-member MMIP Review Commission to review unsolved cases and submit a report to the Legislature every three years with its recommendations and findings. McDaniel said the commission began meeting last year and is continuing to prioritize cases to review. 

But the state does not respond to cases in local law enforcement jurisdictions, unless called upon to assist, McDaniel said. 

Advocates, families and supporters have raised concerns and criticisms at local police departments they say have failed to respond in a timely manner, lack communication with families and lack transparency in the process of investigations. 

McDaniel said families can’t petition the state directly, but can urge their local police department to request assistance with investigations. “We recognize and understand that some, especially small police departments, don’t have the resources, training or equipment to do highly complex technical investigations, and we always will come in, and whether it’s providing maybe some crime scene response or specialized forensics or digital forensics, we do that,” he said. 

Isolation, lack of trust and support services driving factors

Moreno echoed the issue of isolation as one of the biggest driving forces behind the extent of missing and murdered people in Alaska, which she called a human rights crisis. 

“I think that one of the things that really, really makes this such a high number in Alaska is that there are patterns that then have been able to develop. And these patterns have set up systems, unhealthy systems, to allow there to be the ongoing cases, the ongoing people and families that go missing,” she said. 

She said the Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes is working with community partners and other tribal governments and organizations to raise awareness and support for resources and community support services for people experiencing violence, or for situations that may make them vulnerable to going missing, as well as for grieving families. 

“And some of the reason for that, may be that there hasn’t been an establishment of trust or awareness that these services exist,” she said. 

Moreno said that more public awareness, law enforcement and media attention is important. “A lot of times they either go undetected, unreported or unresolved, and the treatment of that has caused, I think, a higher number of cases,” she said.

“Our people, Alaska Native people from all the different tribes, are the original inhabitants of this land, and we need to be treated with the respect that that brings forward on our own ancestral homeland,” she added. 

Moreno said the Central Council is planning to hold future events to support grieving families of those missing or murdered. 

“Space where families can come together and talk with each other and have that safe space that’s uniquely created, even though it’s your tragedy, that’s created to help each other, the person right next to you, with healing.”

Yereth Rosen contributed reporting to this story from Anchorage. 

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