Alaska | Common News Update

Oct92020 by adminNo Comments

The Latest: Virus cluster found at Alaska hockey tournament

Health

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Health officials in Alaska’s largest city on Friday recommended up to 300 people associated with a youth hockey tournament quarantine or isolate after “a cluster” of COVID-19 cases were identified.The Anchorage Health Department said players, coaches and fans from parts of south-central Alaska and Juneau attended the tournament, which was held Oct. 2-4.The department said it encouraged everyone who attended who does not have symptoms to quarantine for 14 days, except to get tested, and encouraged those with symptoms to isolate for 10 days, except to get tested.Dr. Janet Johnston, the department’s epidemiologist, said that means the department is recommending up to 300 isolate or quarantine.Heather Harris, the department’s director, could not provide “concrete” numbers o...

Aug232020 by adminNo Comments

CDC: American Indians, Alaska Natives 3 times more likely to get COVID-19

Health

Aug. 21 (UPI) -- American Indians and Alaska Natives are more than three times as likely to get COVID-19 than White Americans, a new report released Friday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found. Among more than 340,000 confirmed cases of the virus recorded in 23 states between Jan. 22 and July 3, just over 9,000 -- or nearly 3% -- involved American Indians or Alaska Natives, the data showed. Advertisement American Indians and Alaska Natives in these states were infected at a rate of 594 cases per 100,000 people in the general population, compared to 169 cases per 100,000 in the White population, according to the CDC. Those infected in these communities tended to be younger -- in their early 40s -- compared to their White counterparts, who were most often in their ea...

Jun42020 by adminNo Comments

US says Alaska man laundered nearly $1B for Iran through UAE

World

An Alaska man accused of laundering $ 1 billion held in South Korea for Iran funneled nearly all the money through the United Arab EmiratesBy JON GAMBRELL Associated PressJune 4, 2020, 10:17 AM3 min read3 min readDUBAI, United Arab Emirates -- An Alaska man accused of laundering $ 1 billion held in South Korea for Iran funneled nearly all the money through the United Arab Emirates, U.S. federal court documents released early Thursday show. The court documents, filed as part of a U.S. asset seizure effort, shed further light on how Kenneth Zong allegedly created fake invoices to help Iran draw cash held by South Korea in lieu of payment for oil shipments. It also renewed questions about financial transparency in the UAE, as the order sought to seize $ 20 million held by one of the cou...

May42020 by adminNo Comments

Air Force awards $350M in contracts for road work at Alaska military bases

Business

May 1 (UPI) -- The Air Force awarded $ 350 million to five contractors Friday for airfield/roadway paving and striping at five military bases in Alaska, the Department of Defense announced. The multiple award task order contract repair, maintenance and construction of roads, parking lots, airfields and related work at the following sites: Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska; Fort Wainwright, Alaska; Fort Greely, Alaska; Clear Air Force Station, Alaska; and 168th Air National Guard property in Alaska. The award went to five contractors: COLASKA, HC Contractors, Paving Products Inc., Great Northwest and Granite Construction. All but Granite are based in Alaska. According to the Pentagon, the contract award was the result of a competitive bidding process, with five bids received. The contracts i...

Dec212019 by adminNo Comments

Cyber attack forces RavnAir to cancel flights in Alaska

Technology

RavnAir flights has canceled at least a dozen flights Saturday in Alaska following what the company described as “a malicious cyber attack” on its computer networkByThe Associated PressDecember 21, 2019, 10:09 PM1 min readANCHORAGE, Alaska -- RavnAir canceled at least a dozen flights in Alaska on Saturday — at the peak of holiday travel — following what the company described as “a malicious cyber attack” on its computer network. The cancellations affected around 260 passengers, company spokeswoman Debbie Reinwand told the Anchorage Daily News. The regional carrier canceled all flights involving its Dash 8 aircraft until noon "because the cyber attack forced us to disconnect our Dash 8 maintenance system and its back-up,” the company said in a written statement. It wasn’t i...