Guide
Alaska Missing Children at a Glance
A missing child in Alaska is reported to the local police in Anchorage, Fairbanks or Juneau or to the Alaska State Troopers everywhere else, and the Alaska State Troopers' Missing Persons Clearinghouse in the Department of Public Safety keeps the statewide list and runs the AMBER Alert plan. Distance is Alaska's problem: many communities have no road access and no local police, so the Troopers, the Village Public Safety Officers and the Coast Guard all take part in searches.
Alaska has no waiting period to report a missing child, and federal law requires entry into the national database within two hours.
Official sources on this page were checked on September 25, 2026.
Guide
Alaska Statewide Missing Children Search
Guide
How AMBER Alerts work in Alaska
Alaska's AMBER Alert plan is run by the Department of Public Safety. The investigating agency asks the Troopers to activate it when a child under 18 has been abducted and is in danger and there is enough information to broadcast. The alert goes to radio and television, to the wireless emergency alert system, to the Alaska Marine Highway and the airports when a vehicle or vessel is involved, and to the state's social media. Because much of Alaska is reachable only by air or water, alerts often include flight and ferry information.
Guide
Alaska missing children clearinghouse and how to report
The Alaska Missing Persons Clearinghouse within the Alaska State Troopers maintains the statewide missing persons list with photos, coordinates with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children on child cases and with NamUs on long term cases, and its Missing Persons Bulletin is public online. The first call goes to the local police or the nearest Trooper post. Ask for the case number and make sure the child has been entered into the National Crime Information Center, and then call the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST. In villages, the Village Public Safety Officer takes the first report and relays it to the Troopers.
Guide
Other Alaska alerts and where the records go
Alaska issues Silver Alerts for missing seniors and vulnerable adults through the same system, and the state's Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons unit within the Department of Public Safety, created in 2022, reviews cases involving Alaska Native people, who make up a large share of the state's missing persons. Case files stay with the Troopers or the local police and can be withheld while the investigation is active under the Alaska Public Records Act, though the missing person listing itself is public. For a case that stays open, the investigating agency can enter it in NamUs, the national missing persons database, where entries are reviewed and published with the agency's approval and can then be searched by anyone.
Guide
Federal & National Authoritative Sources
Straight answers
Alaska Missing Children, questions
Who do I call about a missing child in Alaska?
The local police in Anchorage, Fairbanks, Juneau and other cities, or the Alaska State Troopers everywhere else, including through the Village Public Safety Officer in rural communities. Then call the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
Who issues AMBER Alerts in Alaska?
The Department of Public Safety through the Alaska State Troopers, at the request of the investigating agency, with alerts sent to broadcasters, phones, the ferry system and airports.
Does Alaska have a missing Indigenous persons program?
Yes. The Department of Public Safety created a Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons unit in 2021 to review and investigate cases involving Alaska Native people.