A Petersburg police officer drives off the vehicle-accessible float in South Harbor in early 2019. (Photo courtesy of A&E)

A film company estimates it captured thousands of hours of footage with police departments in four Alaska locales earlier this year for a TV series called “Alaska PD” that premiers on January 1st.

Engel Entertainment was filming for five to six weeks last spring. Film crews followed police officers for 10-16 hours a day in Fairbanks, Kodiak, Kotzebue and Petersburg as they answered calls for criminal activity and wildlife problems.

Joe Viechnicki spoke with Engel Entertainment’s executive producers on the show Stephanie Angelides and John Kim about what to expect from “Alaska PD.”

The show premiers on the A & E Network on January 1st and 2nd. The episodes will air on Thursdays. Producers say footage from Petersburg will show up later in the eight episode season.