Sorted by date Results 1026 - 1050 of 1602
We’ll never forget To the Editor: We want to thank the Petersburg community for the kindness and support you gave to us after the tragic loss of our granddaughter and niece, Molly Parks. Molly will be forever in our memories and hearts. She was unique, a special gift, kind, amazing, and beautiful. We want to give special thanks to the emergency and medical response teams, and to all the folks who helped R.D. and Madonna through that terrible day and night. When we arrived in Petersburg on July 7, we were greeted with warm welcomes, hugs, and m...
WRANGELL – With the supply of treated water dangerously low, the Borough Assembly officially declared the city to be in a state of disaster Tuesday evening. The decision was reached during a special session in which officials met with departmental staff and representatives of Wrangell’s two fish processing plants, Trident Seafoods and Sea Level Seafoods. With the processing season already underway and production ramping up, the two together are consuming about half of the community’s water. Alarm bells were raised by Public Works when it repor...
WRANGELL - Close to 100 people participated in a memorial walk on Sunday, held to remember those killed or injured in a car crash in Petersburg early last week. Meeting at Wrangell's city dock, more than a third of the walkers were from the neighboring community. Organized by local running group Southeast Beasts, the five kilometer (three mile) course was intended to help show support during a time of tragedy. The route taken brought walkers down Front Street from the dock, up to Zimovia...
Hundreds of Petersburg residents turned out Monday night to take part in a candlelight vigil for the victims in a one-vehicle crash earlier in the day. The vigil began downtown and made its way to the ballfields, where paper lanterns were released, and the firework show concluded shortly after. Molly Parks, 18, and Marie Giesbrecht, 19, passed away as a result of the crash. Two others in the crash were taken to the local hospital. Petersburg Police Department received notice of a car over the... Full story
Phil Loucks works on getting the foundation of the new Harbor Way Parts building complete. Owner Phil Meeks says some of the process will be stop and go, but the walls will be arriving soon, and Meeks thinks the job could be done in eight weeks or so....
The United Kingdom’s recent exit from the European Union – dubbed Brexit — has turned seafood trading on its head. For 43 years the UK has been a major part of the 28 country EU, and what the pull out means for longstanding business arrangements is anyone’s guess. Last year the UK imported over $90 million dollars of Alaska seafood. “It’s still speculative, but anything that has a negative effect on currency values relative to the dollar hurts exports. I do expect we will continue to be strong trading partners with both with the UK and the EU,...
Two females are deceased after an early morning one-vehicle crash, and a community vigil will be held tonight before the fireworks. Two others in the crash were taken to the local hospital, but their names have not been released. Fourth of July organizers canceled day-time events after it was discovered Molly Parks, 18, and Marie Giesbrecht, 19, had passed away as a result of the crash. Petersburg Police Department received notice of a car over the guard rail and in a ditch near the South Harbor parking lot around 7:30 a.m. on Saturday. The... Full story
Petersburg is hosting the largest gathering of Nordhavn yachts ever seen in an Alaska harbor. The Nordhavn Northwest Rendezvous will take place July 8-10, and the event is attracting yacht owners from as far away as Australia, according to rendezvous organizer Douglas Cochrane. "When we first dreamed it up we were hoping we might get six or eight boats together," he says. "And right now, I think the count is 33 and almost 100 people." Last fall, Cochrane decided to set a rendezvous in the...
WRANGELL - The planning team for future development at Wrangell's former Institute site returned this week for a second round of public discussions. At a presentation Monday night, information gleaned from previous sessions in March had been narrowed down into three different concepts. Project lead Chris Mertl of Corvus Design was joined by architect James Bibb of NorthWind Architects and analyst Meilani Schijvens of Rain Coast Data. A surveyor with R&M Engineering joined them the following day...
June 10, 1916 – An unusual type of vessel for these waters arrived in port – a stern wheel steamer, the Onimeca, on her way from Puget Sound to Cook Inlet. She proceeded on her way westward. The Onimeca was purchased recently by the government for use in carrying railroad supplies between points on Cook Inlet. She had belonged to a company at Vancouver, B. C. June 13, 1941 – At 7:30 o'clock Wednesday evening the Petersburg fire siren broke into a warning wail which in time of stress would be a declaration that the community was in dange...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly continued to discuss the prudence of taking ownership of three dock facilities after the state offered to transfer the facilities along with more than $700,000 and the responsibility of operation and maintenance. Last February, the state offered to transfer the Entrance Island, Kupreanof and Papke’s dock facilities to the borough. In a letter from the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities Commissioner Marc Luiken said he applauds the borough’s willingness to accept responsibility and ste...
Petersburg Chamber of Commerce manager Mara Lutomski was treated to an action-packed ending of the 35th Annual Salmon Derby on Monday night. It was the first year overseeing the derby for Lutomski, who had fished the derby before, but never experienced the final minutes at the weigh station before. "It was nice to see that a crowd of people had gathered, which I had been told would happen," she said. "People wanted to see the last action. But everything had been so slow, kind of trickling in thr... Full story
The 35th Annual Petersburg Chamber of Commerce King Salmon Derby gets underway this Friday, May 27 at 7 a.m. The derby continues through the Memorial Day Weekend and ends Monday at 5 p.m. Two tagged fish worth $10,000 and $5,000 will be available for anglers this year. Derby committee member Doug Welde reported the king salmon were tagged on Wednesday morning near the mouth of Wrangell Narrows. The $10,000 prize is sponsored by Alaska Marine Lines and the Petersburg Chamber of Commerce. The $5,000 tagged fish is sponsored by Hammer and Wikan. N... Full story
May 11 Dustin L.W. Delong, 29, was arrested on charges of protective order violation. A caller reported a disabled vehicle. A caller reported a phone scam offering millions of dollars and a Mercedes-Benz. A caller reported he was standing on the side of a roadway and a driver intentionally swerved towards him. A caller reported a borough vehicle’s alarm going off with no one around. A caller reported a white truck driving too fast through a Kiseno Street neighborhood. May 12 A caller reported seeing a flare or fireworks. An officer r...
Abatement has begun on the building project. New curb in front of the building has been poured, and Power & Light got the underground conduit put in place prior to the concrete pour. An attempted suicide in the jail was prevented by staff on April 30. Overall statistics in the Police Department are trending slightly higher this year. Total cases FY 16 through Feb were 3235 – total FY 15 through Feb were 2848. Arrests FY16 through Feb were 48 - Arrests FY 15 through Feb were 26. Jail days are down, however, for the same periods, 343 versus 407.5...
Petersburg Medical Center staff and board members face tough decisions and an even tougher fiscal climate as they continue discussion on how to improve or replace their inadequate facility. PMC board, staff members and architect Joann Lott from Jensen Yorba Lott Architects met last Friday, May 6 to discuss the pros and cons of different options. Lott met with the PMC board last October when it presented a facility assessment. Many of the building’s issues include but are not limited to several mechanical and electrical systems in the L...
City of Kupreanof residents are celebrating their city’s 40th anniversary this Saturday, May 14. Current Kupreanof Mayor Tom Reinarts said activities are planned and he hopes people will head across the Narrows to enjoy the Kupreanof experience. “We’d like everybody to come over and visit us and join us in celebrating the 40th anniversary of our incorporation,” Reinarts said. Kupreanof, which was officially incorporated in October 1975, is one of the lowest populated cities in the state—24 residents, according to Reinarts. The area wasn’t al...
Grateful To the Editor: Thank you to the police officer who helped my fiance with his skiff early Tuesday morning when his skiff almost sunk. He went out of his way to help him and we are very grateful for his assistance. Thank you to the harbor master for contacting the PPD. Tonia Grant and Byron Lyons...
In the face of Alaska’s multi-billion dollar budget shortfalls, state policy makers are putting the onus on fishermen to cover the costs of going fishing. “One of the sources we have to offset general fund decreases is increased test fishing. We don’t like to catch fish or crab or anything just to raise money, but in this climate we’re having to look at that long and hard,” said Scott Kelley, director of the Commercial Fisheries for the Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game. Test fishing is typically done by department chartered vessels to assess st...
Petersburg Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht reported the following during the May 2 Assembly meeting: Un-cruise insurance has paid all but $7,652 of the Middle Harbor repair. Staff has invoiced the remaining balance. Officer Dodson and Dispatcher Huettl resigned on April 18, 2016. A search is underway to fill the positions with one FT dispatcher and one three quarter time dispatcher. This will reduce police coverage and personnel costs slightly. Abatement on the municipal building began May 2. Chief Swihart was appointed to the Alaska Police St...
April 20 A driver was given a warning for speeding. A caller reported a receiver being stolen from a truck the prior night. A caller reported vehicles needing to be moved. Mizani Rawhani, 21, was issued a citation for speeding. Rawhani was reported driving 55 mph in a 40 mph zone. April 21 A caller reported a missing person. The individual was located. A caller reported an individual operating a vehicle with a suspended or revoked license. A caller reported an abandoned vehicle. An officer gave a driver a warning for headlight requirements and...
A local restaurant owner will be expanding her business and plans to open The 420, potentially Petersburg's first retail marijuana business. Susan Burrell has owned and operated the Fisherman's Net Café and Gift Shop on North Nordic Drive since 2013. Within the past year, she began selling pipes and other marijuana smoking products, but said she hadn't planned until recently to open up a retail store. "I had no intention of being a retail store because I figured the competition was going to be...
