Missing man on Kodiak Island: Bad weather on Kodiak Island was hindering a search and rescue operation for a missing man on Sunday afternoon, Alaska State Troopers reported. Brandon T. Phillips, 20, was reported missing Saturday evening just before 10:40 p.m., after he failed to return from a hike outside of Akhiok, 85 miles southwest of the city of Kodiak. An abandoned ATV and kayak which may have been used by Phillips was located, and a local village safety patrol officer organized two "hasty search parties" to comb the area near the found transports. Alcohol may be a factor in the disappearance, troopers write. The U.S. Coast Guard Kodiak Air Station helicopters were actively searching for Phillips on Sunday, and troopers were attempting to send a nine-person search and rescue team to Kodiak. Bad weather had grounded flights to the island, though. The Kodiak coast was facing gale warnings on Sunday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service.
Young girl dies after being shot by younger boy: A 12-year-old girl died Saturday evening after apparently being shot in the neck with a pellet gun by a 6-year-old boy in Delta Junction, Alaska State Troopers reported Sunday. The boy stated that he didn't realize the girl was in front of the muzzle when he pulled the trigger, troopers wrote. The girl was taken to the Fairbanks Memorial Hospital from Delta Junction Saturday evening where she succumbed to her injuries. The investigation is ongoing.
NFL player visits Alaska, schools young athletes: Former quarterback Jake Plummer -- who spent a decade in the NFL, playing for the Arizona Cardinals and Denver Broncos -- paid a visit to Alaska late this summer and educated young kids about the dangers of concussions and how aspiring football players can work smarter to avoid the traumatic brain injuries. NFL.com has a lengthy profile on Plummer's work, which included an August workshop in Juneau. "I love my playing days, and I think if my son, either one of them, wants to play football, then what I want to do is get them prepared for that, help them learn how to fall correctly and how to avoid big hits, and to play with reckless abandon and not the fear of injury," Plummer said in the profile.