The week in Alaska brought record cold, a clean sweep of winter snow in the woods, and a reminder of how ordinary citizens and the Coast Guard step up when lives are on the line. This piece walks through a brutally cold March, a successful Aleutian rescue, and a few hometown observations about what being American looks like when neighbors answer the call.
March delivered an old-fashioned punch to the Susitna Valley and much of Alaska, with overnight lows well below zero through the end of the month. Locals are saying this is one of the coldest winters they can remember, and the snowpack out in the woods is still remarkably clean and beautiful. Even so, folks here are ready for a little thaw and the first hints of spring.
With the close of March in our rearview mirror, we can officially say it was the coldest March on record. A typical March sees an average high around 25.8 degrees, with this year seeing an average high around 13.4 degrees. It took a bit longer than normal, but temperatures are finally inching up towards seasonal values.
We’ll hold onto more sunshine and warmth today (Wednesday), with temperatures set to warm well into the 30s. Many areas will break freezing today, with temperatures climbing a degree or two each day through the weekend. While we continue our dry spell, we’ll watch for some light snow showers building into parts of Kodiak Island tonight into tomorrow, with wintry mix likely as temperatures warm. The rest of Southcentral will tap into a chance for light snow this weekend, although amounts don’t look very promising. This will generally be a light spring snow that will be enough to just cover our dirty snow.
There’s a bit of local pride about the snow staying pristine in the backcountry, except where moose and road crews have left their marks. Around the highway corridors the plows have piled wet, dirty banks, but out where the trees stand, the snow still looks like it did the day it fell. People who live here long enough learn to savor winter’s good parts while counting down the days to spring chores and thawed trails.
Scorekeeping in Alaska remains a quirky tradition, so for this stretch of season we’re calling it: 5 moosecicles. It’s a half-joke, half-measure of how winter plays with daily life—cold snaps, frozen gear, and the odd headache from keeping machines and animals moving. Still, a strong community vibe makes even the long cold spells feel manageable.
The United States Coast Guard reported a rescue of five people Thursday from a fishing vessel taking on water near Umnak Island in the Aleutian Chain.
Watchstanders at the Coast Guard Arctic District Command Center in Juneau received a call for help from the crew of the fishing vessel Ocean Bay around 4:45 a.m. Thursday that said they were aground and the ship was flooding.
An MH-60 Jayhawk helicopter aircrew and HC-130 Hercules airplane crew from Coast Guard Air Station Kodiak launched in response to the distress call. They also diverted the Cutter Waesche crew to the area.
At around 5 a.m., a good Samaritan vessel named Seafreeze Alaska arrived on scene, with the Hercules and Waesche crews arriving about three hours later. The Ocean Bay crew had also managed to stop the flooding.
The Jayhawk aircrew arrived around 11:15 a.m. and managed to hoist all five people on the Ocean Bay crew away and get them to medical services in Dutch Harbor.
The Coast Guard and a civilian vessel, Seafreeze Alaska, teamed up to save five people from the Ocean Bay after it ran aground and began taking on water. Crews from Kodiak and the Cutter Waesche were diverted to the area, with aircrews ultimately hoisting the five to safety and delivering them to medical care. It is the kind of operation that highlights steady training, quick coordination, and the value of civilian ships that answer the call.
It’s right to celebrate a rescue that ended well, and to tip a hat to the mix of professional and civilian responders who made it happen. Life at sea follows rules and demands respect, but when trouble comes, Americans from all walks of life tend to act without hesitation. For those five fishermen, that response meant a trip home to families and friends.
On a broader note, these events are small reminders of what civic duty looks like in practice—neighbors, volunteers, and service members stepping up in dangerous, uncomfortable conditions. Whether it’s clearing roads after a storm or mounting a rescue far out in the Aleutian winter, people in this part of the country still trust one another to do the right thing. That trust is one reason communities endure the toughest weather and the hardest nights.
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