Sorted by date Results 201 - 225 of 387
KODIAK, Alaska (AP) - An Alaska ferry system has released a new schedule that stops service to and from Kodiak Island in the winter, officials said. The Alaska Marine Highway System announced the schedule Thursday, but it does not list ferry operations between Jan. 11 to April 24, The Kodiak Daily Mirror reported Thursday. Each year, transportation stops for a period of time for vessel examination and mechanical maintenance. But this year the ferries are in overhaul simultaneously because of a...
The Alaska Marine Highway System (AMHS) is ending service to Prince Rupert, British Columbia, effective Oct. 1, 2019. U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is requiring AMHS to secure a Canadian law enforcement presence to protect CBP’s personnel in Prince Rupert while inspection tasks are performed. All avenues for local law enforcement were pursued, but AMHS was not able to secure the staff necessary to fulfill this requirement. The new requirement specifies a Canadian law enforcement p...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Alaska’s governor has vetoed additional funding for the state’s ferry service that was placed in the budget by the Legislature, a report said. Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy vetoed $5 million Monday that was added to the Alaska Marine Highway System budget by the Legislature, CoastAlaska reported Monday. The Legislature previously cut $43 million from the ferry system’s budget. A fiscal note attached by the governor’s office called the budget item “premature” ahead of a $250,000 study commissioned to reshape the ferry sys...
With approximately 400 members of the Inlandboatmen's Union going on strike last Wednesday, July 24, operations of the Alaska Marine Highway System have come to a halt. Without ferry services, many people across the state, especially in Southeast Alaska, found themselves stranded. In the communities of Wrangell and Petersburg, many people are facing disruptions to their schedules, families, and work. WRANGELL: Several of Wrangell's children and adults attending a church camp in Juneau were...
Juneau, Alaska (AP) - A spokesman for a union representing workers for the Alaska ferry system says the union has gone on strike. Hundreds of ferry workers went on strike Wednesday after failing to reach agreement on a contract with state negotiators. Robb Arnold, a spokesman for Alaska's Inlandboatmen's Union of the Pacific, said the strike began Wednesday afternoon after a meeting with state officials did not yield an agreement. He said the union remains open to a deal. "Unfortunately, we had...
Senator is wrong To the Editor: Last fall the USFS held public meetings on the repeal of the Roadless Rule. The consensus was overwhelming public support in favor of the Roadless Rule as it now stands, from Alaskans who live, work and play here. Since the last 10 years the Roadless Rule was formalized for Alaska, many local guiding tours and a new a line of smaller, more personal cruise ships now rely on Roadless Rule lands, besides the mega ships that bring over a million passengers a year to...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Alaska will pay armed Canadian police to provide protection to U.S. personnel at a ferry terminal in British Columbia, state transportation officials said. The Alaska Marine Highway System was notified in March that unarmed U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents checking ferries leaving Prince Rupert, British Columbia, will require assistance from Royal Canadian Mounted Police, CoastAlaska reported Friday. Without armed police at inspections, the port faces closure, officials said. The Canadian officers will be c...
Regarding ferry service To the Editor: Demand destruction is a phenomenon that is often referred to when oil prices rise high enough to harm the economy and reduce its ability to purchase fuel. I have another example of demand destruction; getting rid of ferry service to Alaskan communities because the State budget has been mismanaged, which will result in a self inflicted wound to the economy. These small towns have ferry docks, how much was spent to build these docking facilities? Should that...
The borough assembly approved a resolution on Monday opposing Gov. Mike Dunleavy's proposed 2020 fiscal year budget that also lists the direct impacts of the budget to the borough. Resolution #2019-06 urges the governor and the Alaska Legislature to adopt a more balanced budget that only includes budget cuts that are backed up with an analysis of the cut's economic and social impacts to Alaska residents. According to the resolution, the proposed budget would do significant damage to the economie...
Taking advantage of the sunshine Southeast Alaska has been experiencing this spring, Petersburg Medical Center CEO Phil Hofstetter paddled 135 miles in his kayak to Ketchikan by himself as a way to test his endurance. His journey began Friday, March 29 at Banana Point and he arrived in Ketchikan the following Monday. He was greeted by staff at Peace Health Ketchikan Medical Center. Hofstetter said he had been planning to visit the facility and build a relationship with the staff, but flights...
The Alaska Marine Highway System removed the FVF Fairweather from service and transported the vessel to Ketchikan where it waits to be put up for sale. Last week the FVF Fairweather sailed from Juneau to Ketchikan's Ward Cove where it will be stored. Both the FVF Fairweather and the FVF Chenega, which has also been put in storage, will be put up for sale in the coming months, according to Department of Transportation public information officer Aurah Landau of Juneau. "AMHS has determined it...
Thomas William Lewis, 97, passed away peacefully on March 2, 2019, in Petersburg, Alaska. Tom was born October 26, 1921 in Foster, Oregon, the son of Thomas Leroy Lewis and Bessie Olive Clark, and the oldest of four children. His two sisters, Myrtle and Irene, preceded him. His younger half- brother, Denny, lives in Sweet Home, Oregon. He graduated from the 8th grade in Sweet Home and went to work in the logging industry. He had a cousin, Glenn, whom he used to hang out with that introduced him... Full story
Many of the strongest and best memories from my childhood growing up in Juneau revolve around riding Alaska's ferries to swim meets to communities like Petersburg, Sitka, and Ketchikan. And later, as an adult, I have traveled across Southeast on ferries dozens of times for family trips, to deliver orthopedic clinics and surgery to remote communities, for hunting, and for basketball games. Those trips opened my eyes to the astounding beauty and breadth of our state, and they introduced me to...
Dave Kensinger, former chairman of the Marine Transportation Advisory Board, anticipates that the Alaska Marine Highway System could face difficulties restarting services if it were to shut down in October. Under Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s proposed 2020 fiscal year budget, cuts to the AMHS would prevent the ferry system from operating past Oct. 1. Should the ferry system shut down, Kensinger said that a ripple effect would make it increasingly hard to get it up and running again. Specialized employees would find themselves without work and have to s...
A town hall meeting was called by Mayor Mark Jensen last week to hear comments and concerns from the public regarding Gov. Mike Dunleavy's proposed budget for the 2020 fiscal year. The community was overwhelmingly against the proposed budget, which would balance Alaska's $1.6 billion deficient by cutting expenditures to equal revenues without create new sources of revenue. According to a document created by the borough, Petersburg could face a total economic impact of over $3 million. It was...
WRANGELL — State Representative Dan Ortiz was present at Wrangell’s town hall meeting on March 6 and gave the audience some context on Alaska’s financial situation, and to go into some detail on what the proposed budget means for several state services. Adjusted for inflation and population growth, he said, Alaska’s budget is the smallest it has been in almost 40 years. Despite this, the state government has been operating with a deficit for several years. As many people are aware, Alaska’s economic fortunes are heavily tied to the oil indus...
Why a free pass? To the Editor: How is this fair? The Borough Assembly just voted to put a proposed ordinance on the ballot this fall to change the way Borough Assembly Member seats are elected. This issue was brought forward by Don Koenigs, a concerned citizen who went to a few assembly meetings and talked to a few people about his idea. How is it fair that he gets his idea on the ballot with such a minimal amount of effort? The Borough Assembly refused to help the proponents of the ATV and...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — A co-chairman of the Senate Finance Committee said Thursday he wants to reach a budget agreement that would fund the state’s ferry system through mid-2020. Sen. Bert Stedman, a Sitka Republican, said that would allow time for further discussion about management of the system going forward. Stedman said he views Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s budget proposal as an “elimination budget” for the Alaska Marine Highway System. A spokeswoman for the ferry system has said it hasn’t scheduled sailings past Oct. 1. Stedman said he wants to...
Okay Governor Dunleavy, you have our attention; our full and undivided attention. Like you, we're in favor of eliminating unnecessary spending by the state. We're in favor of a balanced budget. But the proposed budget simply ignores the impacts that will be spread across communities, families and individuals statewide. No one can undo years of deficit spending in a single budget, with little to no consideration of the hardship it will place on citizens, schools, state transportation and other go...
Alaska’s new slogan is “open for business” but good luck trying to find out any budget details when it comes to the business of fishing. The Dunleavy administration has a full gag order in place at the Alaska Department of Fish and Game and all budget questions, no matter how basic, are referred to press secretary Matt Shuckerow. Likewise, queries to the many deputies and assistants at the ADF&G commissioner’s office are deferred to Shuckerow who did not acknowledge messages for information. “It isn’t just the media or Alaskans. Legislators...
Sen. Bert Stedman addressed Gov. Mike Dunleavy's proposed budget for Alaska's 2020 fiscal year at the annual Petersburg Chamber of Commerce banquet on Saturday. Dunleavy released his proposed budget on Feb. 13. Determined to not raise taxes and to distribute a $3,000 permanent dividend check to every Alaskan, Dunleavy's proposed budget will solve Alaska's $1.6 billion deficit by having expenditures equal to the amount of the state's revenue. As a result, state departments and programs face...
Guardian Flight has resumed their air medical transport service in six base locations across Alaska following a 63-hour search for an overdue Guardian King Air 200 medical life flight near Kake. While services have resumed in Anchorage, Deadhorse, Dillingham, Fairbanks, Ketchikan and Sitka, Guardian Flight base locations in Kotzebue and Juneau will reopen sometime in the future, according Guardian Flight senior vice president of operations Randy Lyman in a prepared statement. "Guardian Flight...
The United States Coast Guard has located possible debris from an aircraft with three people onboard that was due to land in Kake Tuesday evening at 6:19 P.M., according to a USCG press release. On board the Guardian King Air 200 medical life flight, which departed from Anchorage, was a pilot, a nurse and a paramedic who were planning on picking up a patient in Kake. Because of Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act regulations, representatives from Kake Health Clinic and Guardian...
The United States Coast Guard suspended its 63-hour search Thursday evening for an overdue Guardian King Air 200 medical life flight near Kake. On board were pilot Patrick Coyle, 63, flight nurse Stacie Rae Morse, 30, and flight paramedic Margaret Langston Allen, 43. "Suspending a search for any reason is one of the most difficult decisions we have to make," said Capt. Stephen White, Sector Juneau commander in a USCG press release. "This was an extensive search effort in some very challenging... Full story
JUNEAU — The Alaska Marine Highway System (AMHS) is making a vessel route change with the goals of saving money and utilizing the new Alaska Class Ferries (ACF) as soon as possible. AMHS will move the ACF Tazlina to Lynn Canal to replace service by the F/V Fairweather, starting in May 2019. The ACF Hubbard will move to Prince William Sound to replace service provided by the Aurora in 2020. “I commend AMHS for taking a hard look at the system and recognizing opportunities to save money,” said DOT&PF Commissioner John MacKinnon. “By putting...
