Most Alaskans can attest to paying a lot at the grocery store. But data released last week by Alaska’s Department of Labor and Workforce Development in its monthly economic newsletter Trends, suggests food prices in Kodiak could be the highest in the country.  A new article from state economists uses survey data from 265 that shows Kodiak as having some …

Longtime Kodiak resident Rod Murdock, who was 73, and 91-year-old Byron Chitwood died in the crash, according to Alaska State Troopers. The Piper Cherokee went down just north of the village of Old Harbor on Sunday, July 2 – about 6 minutes into the flight. The names and any identifying information of those on board had not been confirmed publicly …

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is testing out a new, marine drone called DriX this summer to help survey fish populations in the waters off Alaska’s coast. The new technology could transform the work it does, from stock assessments for fisheries to marine mapping. The DriX is essentially an unmanned, robotic boat, and looks kind of like the top …

Updated Monday, July 3 at 5:45 p.m. KMXT’s Brian Venua contributed to this reporting. A small plane crashed near the village of Old Harbor – on the southeast side of Kodiak Island – on Sunday afternoon. The Piper Cherokee crashed just 6 minutes into its flight; it was reported at 3:30 p.m. Five people were aboard when it went down …

The Alutiiq Museum is closing its doors in mid-July, as it prepares to break ground on a $13.8 million expansion project later this summer. A rendering of the entrance to the Alutiiq Museum once the expansion and renovation project is complete (Photo courtesy the Alutiiq Museum) The Alutiiq Museum’s planned renovation and expansion will add 3,400 square feet to the …

A major study of one of the state’s largest marine environments is underway. Data from this year’s Gulf of Alaska bottom trawl survey will provide information about Pacific cod recovery following marine heatwaves. (Photo courtesy NOAA Fisheries) The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration conducts bottom trawl surveys to compile fisheries and environmental data across the country, and this summer, the …

The city of Kodiak is moving forward with the permitting phase of a replacement for St. Herman Harbor. City council members discussed the details at a work session Tuesday night, but not everyone was on board with what comes next.  Kodiak Harbormaster Dave Johnson asked council members at Tuesday’s work session to greenlight a contract with Anchorage-based PND Engineers to …

The waters in and around the Buskin River will close this weekend to sport, commercial and subsistence sockeye fishing. The closure takes effect on Saturday, June 17 at 12:01 a.m. A fisherman at the mouth of the Buskin River. (Photo by Lisa Hupp/USFWS) Alaska’s Department of Fish and Game announced the closure Wednesday, June 14 citing low numbers of sockeye …

The archipelago is now home to five community and tribally owned farms – with plans for a sixth agricultural site this summer. The idea is to connect the island through locally grown food, and the island could be a model of food security for other parts of rural Alaska. You might not realize that a full-fledged farm has popped up …

The Coast Guard is still investigating what caused a boat to sink in St. Herman Harbor earlier this month.  The 48-foot fishing vessel La Mer sank in its slip on Friday, June 2; it’s since been floated and pulled from the water.  Kodiak’s St. Herman’s Harbor at sunset; June 2022 (Kirsten Dobroth/KMXT) Kodiak Harbormaster Dave Johnson told City Council members …