Soldotna’s Central Peninsula hospital, about 150 miles from Anchorage, is operating at 133% capacity, said spokesperson Bruce Richards. And he’s worried about what will come next. “We all know that hospitalizations lag following these high-case days, so I don’t know what’s in store for us.”

Central Peninsula serves about 38,000 people, but it doesn’t usually offer higher levels of care. For that, patients are typically transferred to nearby hospitals in Anchorage. But with those hospitals also over capacity, Central Peninsula is caring for sicker patients than ever before…

There are no life-support machines, known as ECMO, in the entire state of Alaska, which means very sick patients need to be transferred to hospitals in western states, which are also facing pressure from the surge in cases. “As we’ve seen decreased beds across the country, including Seattle and Portland, we’ve been unable to, or seen significant delays, in transferring people to the lower 48,” Zink said.

“Geography really is a huge challenge,” Zink said. The average Alaskan travels 147 miles each way to access care, and many communities are only accessible by plane, where weather delays can present yet another hurdle.