Burst pipes and dayslong outages in the Mat-Su, but some are getting power back

Also: An advisory vote on EagleExit? Email not displaying correctly? [View the web version]( [Anchorage Daily News]( Today's sponsor: [Today's sponsor: Alaska Airlines]( Support independent reporting on what Alaskans care about most. [Subscribe today.]( Good afternoon. It’s Tuesday, January 4. In today's newsletter: - As some in the Mat-Su get power, others contend with burst pipes and dayslong outages. - The Anchorage School District is planning to stick with in-person learning amid the uptick in COVID-19 cases. - An Anchorage Assembly member is pushing for an advisory vote on whether Eagle River should secede from the city. This week's column from historian David Reamer remembers Floyd Kaleak. Kaleak, who died in 2004, was known for panhandling around Anchorage -- or rather, he was known for how he went about it: "He was a combination folk hero, spectacle and fixture," Reamer writes. Whether you remember Kaleak or are learning about him for the first time, his story is worth your time. [Read the full column here](. ☀️ Anchorage weather It's sunny and chilly in Anchorage today, with a high near 0 degrees. It's expected to get down to around minus 9 degrees tonight, and then back up to around 0 degrees tomorrow. We're continuing to cover the fallout from the windstorm in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough; much more on that below. — Elizabeth Harball, eharball@adn.com [As some in Mat-Su get power, others contend with burst pipes and dayslong outages]( [As some in Mat-Su get power, others contend with burst pipes and dayslong outages]( The Matanuska Electric Cooperative is working feverishly to restore power to residents around Mat-Su, where just over 8,000 households remained without electricity Tuesday after a violent, multiday windstorm hammered the region starting over the weekend. See more photos of the storm's wake and residents coping with the aftermath [here](. [Read More]( [Anchorage School District plans to stick with in-person learning amid virus uptick]( [Anchorage School District plans to stick with in-person learning amid virus uptick]( A shift to virtual learning would be a “last resort,” Anchorage School District superintendent Deena Bishop said in a letter to families and staff Tuesday. “The priority is keeping our schools open and safe with in-person learning. Our students belong in the classroom,” Bishop wrote in the letter. “Nevertheless, things could change depending on how this recent variant continues.” [Read More]( [Anchorage Assembly member pushing for advisory vote on whether Eagle River should secede from the city]( [Anchorage Assembly member pushing for advisory vote on whether Eagle River should secede from the city]( Vice Chair Christopher Constant said on social media that he intends to ask the Assembly to put a question before Anchorage voters on the April ballot that asks: “Should the area of Eagle River, Chugiak, and Eklutna be detached from the Municipality of Anchorage and form a separate local government?” [Read More]( [Windstorm leads to COVID-19 testing site closures and long waits in Anchorage]( [Windstorm leads to COVID testing site closures and long waits in Anchorage due to short staffing]( High winds and hazardous road conditions in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough caused many of the employees staffing COVID-19 testing sites in Southcentral Alaska, including Anchorage, to miss work on Monday. [Read More]( [Alaska oil and gas regulators fine Hilcorp more than $50,000 for violations]( [Alaska oil and gas regulators fine Hilcorp more than $50,000 for violations]( The Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission expressed concerns about the company’s record and behavior, saying in one order that it exhibited a "lack of good faith" in its compliance efforts. [Read More]( More from the ADN [Delta Junction man who threatened Alaska’s US senators pleads guilty]( [Delta Junction man who threatened Alaska’s US senators pleads guilty]( [Read More]( [Canada reaches $31.5 billion deal over Indigenous children put in foster care unnecessarily]( [Canada reaches $31.5 billion deal over Indigenous children put in foster care unnecessarily]( [Read More]( [A record 4.5 million US workers quit or changed jobs in November]( [A record 4.5 million US workers quit or changed jobs in November]( [Read More]( [Alaska fish board member resigns four months after appointment]( [Alaska fish board member resigns four months after appointment]( [Read More]( [2 shot during ‘altercation’ in vehicle at Midtown Anchorage intersection, police say]( [2 shot during ‘altercation’ in vehicle at Midtown Anchorage intersection, police say]( [Read More]( [Picks and pans for 2021 in Alaska’s seafood industry]( [Picks and pans for 2021 in Alaska’s seafood industry]( [Read More]( The ADN relies on readers like you. [Get digital access to the ADN for about $4 per week]( and help us cover the news that matters most here in Alaska. [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( [Click here to unsubscribe and manage your email subscriptions.]( Anchorage Daily News Anchorage Daily News 300 W 31st Avenue, Anchorage, AK 99503