Lisa Murkowski: “I thank the managers for accepting my amendment on the reconstruction of the Alaska Highway. The Alcan is the only road…”

“I thank the managers for accepting my amendment on the reconstruction of the Alaska Highway. The Alcan is the only road link between the contiguous states and Alaska. It was constructed in 1942 during World War II to respond to a critical strategic need for such a highway. This amendment adds language needed to fund the last stages of a multi-year reconstruction project on the Alcan, which runs 1,520 miles from Dawson Creek, British Columbia to Fairbanks, Alaska. The still-unfinished portion is the last 95 miles of the 325-mile northern, or 'Shakwak' section, so-called because a good part of it runs through a geological formation called the Shakwak Trench. At this point, Mr. President, I want to provide a little of this highway's fascinating history. Since the British burned the Capitol here in Washington during the War of 1812, the United States' territory in the mainland of North America has suffered only one invasion. That invasion was during World War II, in Alaska. In 1940, construction began on Fort Richardson, outside Anchorage. However, immediately after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, it became clear that Alaska had great strategic importance as a staging area for forces in the North Pacific. Construction on the Alcan began in the spring of 1942. In June 1942, Japanese aircraft bombed Dutch Harbor, Alaska.”