Glenn Highway

Alaska State Troopers are investigating an officer involved shooting on the Glenn Highway near Thunder Bird Falls.Troopers say both the inbound and outbound lanes of the Glenn Highway are shut down near the Thunder Bird Falls exit and they're not ready to say when the highway will be re-opened.The shooting happened around 4:20 this morning, and troopers say the investigation could take several hours. We'll bring you more details on this ongoing situation as they become available.

Alaska State Troopers said a male suspect was shot and killed Friday morning on the Glenn Highway after a vehicle pursuit started in Wasilla. Troopers say at about 4 a.m. the suspect, in a 1994 Saturn Coupe, apparently failed to signal a right turn onto the Parks Highway. The man did not pull over when the Trooper tried to stop him, and a 20-minute chase, that stretched over a distance of 30 miles, began. The length and duration of the chase imply an average speed of 90 miles an hour, but when asked, Troopers said they are investigating and could not confirm the speed of the chase.  Spike strips were set up prior to the Trunk Road turnoff on the Parks Highway, and deflated a tire, but Troopers said the vehicle continued driving southbound onto the Glenn Highway.

Alaska State Troopers have identified the drivers involved in a fatal three-vehicle wreck near Sutton Wednesday afternoon that temporarily closed the Glenn Highway, as crash victims seek two pets that ran away after the crash. AST spokesperson Megan Peters said the crash occurred around 1 p.m. at Mile 64.5 of the Glenn. Troopers say 34-year-old Michael Jenkins, of Sutton, died as a result of the crash when he was traveling south toward Palmer in a Mercury passenger car that crossed the center line, immediately striking one vehicle and then another that tried to avoid the collision.

The Matanuska Glacier is one of the oldest accessible glacial formations accessible in the United States. Located just 2 hours by car, northeast of Anchorage, it is one of Alaska's most visited natural treasures.   The magnificent river of ice is not only filled with some of the most beautiful views and scenery, it is also full of surprises.  Surprises that Channel 2 Photojournalist Sean Wilson and I discovered during our recent “up-close and personal” Matanuska glacier adventure.

The traditional Alaskan roadhouse may seem like an endangered species, but there's one that's alive and well on Mile 153 of the Glenn Highway, near Glennallen.  The Mendeltna Creek Lodge has been part of the landscape along the Glenn Highway since the 1940's.  But it was a lot smaller in those days.  Over the years, there have been a number of different owners, but probably none quite like Russ and Mabel Wimmer. They cook.  They clean. They wait the tables, pretty much by themselves.

Mendeltna is off the Glenn Highway about 153 miles from Anchorage.  You have to watch for the sign, otherwise you might miss it. No more than a few dozen people live there. But on Memorial Day weekend, all that changes, thanks to the Mendeltna Creek Music festival. For three days, several hundred people gathered at the Mendeltna Creek Lodge, bringing their fiddles, guitars, stand-up basses, banjos and mandos, or mandolins. Nick “the Dream” Weaver came packing his guitar and ukulele, as well as his bongos.  “It really is a heart-felt experience for me,” says Weaver, an Anchorage singer-songwriter.  “I wish life could be like this, just on a regular basis.”  Weaver can be found leading jam sessions at the lodge into the early morning hours, which were a lot more packed this year, due to the chilly weather.

A Palmer driver was severely injured Wednesday afternoon when her Toyota Camry collided with a dump truck at an intersection on the Old Glenn Highway, according to Alaska State Troopers. An AST dispatch Wednesday evening said troopers were informed of the collision at about 12:15 p.m. and responded to the scene, near Mile 12.5 of the Old Glenn at its intersection with Bodenburg Loop, along with state commercial vehicle enforcement officials and paramedics. The Camry's driver and sole occupant, 16-year-old Christa Russell, was flown by air ambulance to an Anchorage hospital with potentially life-threatening injuries.

Firefighters from Palmer, Sutton and the Mat-Su Valley responded to a blaze at a Sutton home Friday afternoon which spread from a burn barrel, causing no injuries but destroying two outbuildings. Officials at the scene, near Mile 65.5 of the Glenn Highway, say flames apparently escaped from the barrel and spread across a lawn and some logs, subsequently reaching the outbuildings. The blaze was quickly brought under control, and neither the main home nor a second home initially reported to be on fire were ever burned.

The Anchorage Police Department has released the name of the person who died in the early morning crash into the Muldoon entrance gate at Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson. APD said 44-year-old Brenda Kae Davis was declared dead at a local hospital and no other people were hurt. Police said Davis slammed a hummer she was driving directly into the Muldoon entrance gate of Joint Base Elmendorf Richardson at about 2 a.m. Monday. The gate, which was closed for the evening, is located on Provider Drive, just west of Muldoon Road off the Glenn highway.