Former workers detail deepening chaos at Anchorage's youth psychiatric hospital

Plus: What the proposed Albertsons-Kroger merger could mean in Alaska Email not displaying correctly? [View the web version]( [Anchorage Daily News]( Today's sponsor: [Today's sponsor: Northrim Bank]( Support independent reporting on what Alaskans care about most. [Subscribe today.]( Good afternoon. It’s Monday, November 21. In today's newsletter: - Former workers describe long-standing issues at the North Star psychiatric hospital in Anchorage, and say understaffing and decisions by management pushed the facility to the brink of disaster. - A deal that would unite Fred Meyer and Carrs Safeway grocery stores is raising unique concerns in Alaska, where the stores are the dominant urban grocers in an isolated state with limited competition. - Since Anchorage first opened the Sullivan Arena as a mass shelter, the surrounding neighborhood has faced a stream of public safety issues. Those who live and work there are calling on the city for help. David James' most recent [book review]( highlights the story of Dr. James Taylor White, an itinerant doctor who made multiple trips to Alaska in the late 19th century. He experienced Alaska just as it was transitioning in the public mind from a wasteland of ice into a massive depot of exploitable resources. And he saw firsthand the deadly results of the Gold Rush on Indigenous residents. 🌧️ Anchorage weather There's a chance of rain today and a high near 36 degrees. As things cool down tonight, that'll turn into a chance of snow overnight. Tuesday calls for scattered snow showers. Here’s what else is making headlines in Alaska today. — Megan Pacer, mpacer@adn.com [‘I watched it rapidly turn into absolute chaos’: Inside the deepening dysfunction at North Star psychiatric hospital]( [‘I watched it rapidly turn into absolute chaos’: Inside the deepening dysfunction at North Star psychiatric hospital]( Three former employees were willing to speak with the Daily News about their experiences working at North Star. All of them said the same thing: The hospital failed to hire, train and retain staff to safely manage a volatile group of patients. [Read More]( [What the proposed Albertsons-Kroger merger could mean in Alaska ]( [What the proposed Albertsons-Kroger merger could mean in Alaska]( Critics in Alaska, echoing national concerns, argue that the $25 billion deal could lead to higher prices as competition and potentially stores are reduced, harming neighborhoods, jobs and food selection. [Read More]( [Safety issues mount around the Sullivan Arena shelter. Neighbors plead with the city to help.]( [Safety issues mount around the Sullivan Arena shelter. Neighbors plead with the city to help.]( Residents and business owners have cleaned up graffiti, hired security guards, tried to resuscitate people and — more than once – discovered bodies. They say nowhere in Anchorage will accept a low-barrier shelter until the city comes up with a way to deal with neighborhood impacts. [Read More]( ADVERTISEMENT [Crowded ERs in some of Alaska’s hospitals lead to lengthy waits, delayed care]( [Crowded ERs in some of Alaska’s hospitals lead to lengthy waits, delayed care]( Strained emergency departments in hospitals, including Alaska’s largest, are experiencing severe delays and high patient volumes amid staff shortages and a surge in respiratory diseases. [Read More]( [Soldotna firefighters rescue young moose from Soldotna basement]( [Soldotna firefighters rescue young moose from basement]( Rescuing a moose that fell into a Soldotna basement was not something that Kenai Peninsula firefighter Gunnar Romatz expected on his shift Sunday. Nonetheless, that’s just where Romatz found himself: helping extract a young moose from the lower level of a home, where the animal became trapped after falling through a window. [Read More]( ADVERTISEMENT More from the ADN [Could oil-rich Alaska be forced to import natural gas? 2 utilities are looking into it.]( [Could oil-rich Alaska be forced to import natural gas? 2 utilities are looking into it.]( [Read More]( [Fires aboard tanker ship docked at Anchorage port contained after ‘large backfire boom’]( [Fires aboard tanker ship docked at Anchorage port contained after ‘large backfire boom’]( [Read More]( [UAA tops La Salle to take Great Alaska Shootout title]( [UAA tops La Salle to take Great Alaska Shootout title]( [Read More]( [Railroad union rejects contract as strike threatens U.S. economy ahead of holidays]( [Railroad union rejects contract as strike threatens US economy ahead of holidays]( [Read More]( [George Argus, a man of the mountain, and its willows]( [George Argus, a man of the mountain, and its willows]( [Read More]( [Restoration of bison herds spreads in US as tribes reclaim stewardship]( [Restoration of bison herds spreads in US as tribes reclaim stewardship]( [Read More]( [What local employers can learn from Elon Musk’s Twitter crisis]( [What local employers can learn from Elon Musk’s Twitter crisis]( [Read More]( [Get digital access to the ADN for as low as $1.99 for the first month]( and help us cover the news that matters most here in Alaska. 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