Iditarod: Dog Death, Windstorm Impact Race

0:00You're listening to Anchorage News today, powered by the Daily News Now. An acropsy on four-year-old dog Charlie, from Mushroom Mill Porsouth's team, show no clear cause of death during this year's I Didarad. The dog passed away Tuesday on the way to the LM checkpoint, even after acing all pre-Race vet checks. Officials shared this update Friday. Porsouth, a 53-year-old veteran from Denmark, living in Willow, Alaska, scratched her team that same day under Race Rule 42, which lets, Mushers bow out after losing a dog. More lab tests are underway to dig deeper into what happened. This marks the first dog death in the 2026 race so far, following one last year and three the year before. The I Didarad stresses thorough reviews to keep teams safe on the brutal trail. Meanwhile, a fierce windstorm stalled the final nine Mushers at White Mountain for up to two days past their mandatory eight-hour arrest. Rookie Kevin Hanson got their Wednesday at 3.0 a.p.m., and didn't leave until Friday at 9.33 a.m.

1:00Now they're all charging toward known, with Hanson out front just 30 miles away, and Rookie's Sadie Linquist trailing by only four miles as they near. The safety checkpoint. The finish line beckons for these determined teams.