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With bright and colorful lights strung up around town and Christmas music playing inside businesses, there is no doubt that the date is approaching Dec. 25. Before it gets any closer to Christmas, the United States Postal Service is urging residents to mail their packages and presents to loved ones as early as possible. "This would be the right year to mail early," said James Boxrud, a spokesperson with the USPS. Post offices around the country are already seeing an increase in mail traveling...
Petersburg's Emergency Operations Center has released the draft of its risk communication plan and COVID-19 dashboard, which will monitor the status of the virus in the community and offer mitigation strategies based on the current risk level. The dashboard utilizes four risk levels ranging from green to red to gauge the local COVID-19 status. It also monitors the risk levels at Petersburg Medical Center and Petersburg School District. Data on the dashboard shows COVID-19 tests numbers and any...
The Borough Assembly passed an ordinance in its second reading on Monday that adjusts the fiscal year 2021 budget for known changes, which allocates unused funds from the borough's utility subsidy program to pay first responders and Emergency Operations Center staff with Coronavirus, Aid, Relief, and Economic Support Act funds through December. The Borough Assembly previously budgeted $500,000 for a one-time $500 utility credit to households that were struggling financially as a result of the...
PIA met need To the Editor: Mt. View Food Services would like to generously thank Petersburg Indian Association for applying for the CDC Grant which was geared to keeping senior citizens fed a nutritious meal during the pandemic. PIA knew of the need MVFS had for a new vehicle and the several attempts they applied for a grant before the pandemic happened to replace their unreliable vehicle. The grant was written specifically for PIA to assist MVFS in the purchase of a newer vehicle and pay for...
Total expenses exceeded total operating revenue at Petersburg Medical Center for the month of October by $582,842, according to PMC Controller Rocio Tejera. The hospital had expected total operating revenue to reach $1,620,228 in October, but it only brought in $1,384,880. Expenses on the other hand saw an increase of 22.9 percent. PMC spent $1,967,772 in October but had budgeted for $1,600,937. Tejera said the reason for the discrepancy between expenses and total operating income comes from the...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — A third inmate within the Alaska Department of Corrections has died from complications related to COVID-19, the department said Tuesday. The 78-year-old with underlying conditions died Tuesday, four days after being taken from a correctional facility in Anchorage to a hospital, the department said. The person had been in custody since 2017 on a sexual abuse charge but was not sentenced, the department said. The two prior COVID-19-related deaths announced by the department involved individuals who had been held at the G...
JUNEAU Alaska (AP) — The traditional holiday open house at the governor’s mansion in Juneau won’t be held this year due to the coronavirus pandemic, a spokesperson for Gov. Mike Dunleavy said Tuesday. Spokesperson Jeff Turner, by email, said the pandemic “has fundamentally changed how Alaskans will observe the holidays. To help prevent the spread of COVID-19 and protect the community of Juneau, the decision has been made to cancel this year’s holiday open house.’’ The mansion in years past has opened to the public for the event, with the gove...
Two more positive cases of COVID-19 were identified in Petersburg on Friday, Nov. 27, according to a joint press release between the Petersburg Borough and the Petersburg Medical Center. The first individual was a Petersburg resident who became symptomatic for COVID-19 while out of state, according to the joint press release. Before returning to town, the infected individual followed Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines for isolation. The individual tested positive for the virus...
Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht will be narrowing down the list of finalists for the Parks and Recreation Department director position from five candidates to two or three candidates this week, with help from borough staff and members from the Parks and Recreation Advisory Board. Twelve candidates applied for the director's position, which was left vacant when the previous Parks and Rec. director, Chandra Thornburg, resigned in January. Since then, Giesbrecht has been the acting director. The...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) – A group of four nonprofit organizations in Alaska’s capital have been awarded a grant of more than $860,000 to counter homelessness amid the coronavirus pandemic. The Juneau Empire reported Friday that the grant from the Alaska Housing Financial Corporation will be shared by the Juneau groups following their joint application to the corporation. The award is part of a federal coronavirus recovery fund emergency solutions grant to help prevent those affected by the pandemic from experiencing homelessness. The Glory Hal...
The Petersburg Emergency Operations Center confirmed four new cases of COVID-19 have been identified in Petersburg, according to three joint press releases between the Petersburg Borough and the Petersburg Medical Center. One case was confirmed on Friday, one on Saturday and two on Sunday. An Alaska resident recently traveled to Petersburg and was later deemed a close contact of a positive case identified on Nov. 14, according to one of the press releases. The individual later tested positive...
The Petersburg High School volleyball team runners up in this year's Region V Regional Tournament on Nov. 21. During a normal school year, the team would have advanced to State, marking their first return since winning the state championships in 2017, said Head Coach Jaime Cabral. The team woke up early on Saturday to travel to Klawock for the first game of the tournament. The match was shortened to best two out of three sets to limit the amount of time each team spent interacting with each...
Terry McGowen, in front, aligns the container of COVID-19 relief and supplies, destined for Petersburg Indian Association, on Tonka Toy Rentals' boom truck. Charles Davis, in the background, slowly lowers the container onto the bed of the truck. In the last six weeks, Tonka Toy Rentals has delivered 15 containers full of COVID-19 relief supplies to native communities around Southeast Alaska, according to Davis, owner of Tonka Toy Rentals. Davis was hired by Tlingit & Haida to deliver the...
Borough residents are now required to wear a face covering in public buildings, work settings and at outdoor public gatherings of 50 people or more following the approval of public health mandate #8 by the Borough Assembly at their Monday meeting. Monday's discussion on whether the assembly should pass a borough-wide face covering mandate left assembly members and the community divided. After several amendments to the mandate, public health ordinance #8 was able to pass in a 4-3 vote. The...
Three new cases of COVID-19 have been reported in town since last week's COVID-19 community update, according to joint press releases between the Petersburg Borough and Petersburg Medical Center. The first two cases were identified on the morning of Nov. 14. One positive case was confirmed to be a local resident who is traveling out of state, according to a joint press release. The individual is isolated at their destination and will remain there until they have recovered. The person was not in...
Petersburg Indian Association received six declaration of candidacy letters for four seats on the Tribal Council, including the one-year council chair seat. The deadline to submit a letter of declaration of candidacy was on Monday, but anyone still interested in running for a seat on the council can fill out a letter of intent to run as a write-in candidate. Interested tribal members have until Nov. 23 at 4 P.M. to submit a letter of intent. Christina Morrison, the current Tribal Council...
Schools doing extraordinary things To the Editor: I want to publicly thank the teachers and staff at Stedman Elementary for all they did to contain the Covid exposure earlier this month. My son was in the impacted class and we were all thrilled when the virus did not appear to spread. The fact that it was contained is a testament to the leadership of Heather Conn and the hard work of the teachers and staff, namely Brittany Potrzuski. This year, we have asked the schools to do extraordinary...
Petersburg joined Wrangell and other Alaskan communities by imposing a mask mandate. As Covid-19 cases skyrocket across the state, Governor Dunleavy left it up to communities statewide to take action to reduce infections, due to his refusal to impose a mask mandate. For Petersburg, with a limited health care infrastructure, it's important that virus spread be controlled because once community spread transmissions begin our hospital and health care providers could easily be overwhelmed. More...
Like most people in town, Ashley Lohr's summer travel plans were cancelled this year. Instead, she hunkered down in her workshop and churned out handmade earrings and necklaces at a pace that made her feel like she was an artist in residency. All 70 pieces of Lohr's jewelry, as well as six paintings, will be on display at the Clausen Memorial Museum until Nov. 28 in a solo exhibit titled, Equilibrium. The exhibit showcases how far she has progressed as an artist and jewelry maker in the past...
The Borough Assembly approved a health mandate on Monday that requires intrastate travelers arriving in Petersburg be tested for COVID-19 before or upon their arrival to town. Public health mandate #9 also lists procedures and protocols for anyone arriving in Petersburg through the James A. Johnson Airport or the Alaska Marine Highway System. If an individual arrives in town with proof of a negative test result, the test must have been taken within 72 hours, according to the mandate. If the pers...
The Borough Assembly extended the borough's health mandate that places COVID-19 protocols on vessels docking and disembarking at borough harbor facilities for the fourth time at their meeting on Monday. Public health mandate #5 requires anyone onboard a vessel that is looking to enter Petersburg harbor facilities and is subject to Alaska interstate and interstate travel protocols be screened by Borough Public Health Officer Mark Tuccillo before disembarking. If any crew members or passengers...
Tamped down prices due to toppled markets caused by the Covid virus combined with low salmon returns to many Alaska regions added up to reduced paychecks for fishermen and will mean lower tax revenues for fishing communities. A summary of the preliminary harvests and values by the Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game shows that Alaska’s total 2020 salmon catch came in at just under 117 million fish, a 44% decrease from last season’s haul of 208.3 million fish, and the 13th lowest on record. The statewide salmon value of $295.2 million is a who...
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) introduced legislation that extends the period during which States, Indian Tribes, territories, and local governments may use Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF) payments, allocated under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. If enacted, this bipartisan legislation will allow the relief funds to be used until September 30, 2021, rather than the original deadline of the end of this year, December 30, 2020. The CARES Act, signed into law on M...
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game has released preliminary data on state salmon harvests for 2020. Information for Southeast Alaska shows that only half as many fish were hauled in this year compared to last year. 2020 data shows that 14,301,964 salmon were harvested this year, totaling a little over 74 million pounds. The estimated ex vessel value for this harvest is about $50 million. This is a major decrease from 2019 numbers, reported at about 32 million fish, 163 million pounds, and...
With the hopes of encouraging residents to resist pandemic fatigue as Alaska approaches the eight month mark of battling COVID-19, the Petersburg Emergency Operations Center released a health alert on Thursday, Nov. 5 reminding residents of the protocols they can take to prevent the spread of COVID-19 while keeping schools and the local economy open. Public health alert #3 strongly recommends, but doesn't mandate, six mitigation strategies. Residents are asked to wear a face covering when...
