Sorted by date Results 3711 - 3735 of 5673
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) – Forty-six people have abandoned a sinking fishing vessel in Alaska’s Aleutian Islands The Coast Guard says all 46 donned survival suits Tuesday and were awaiting rescue in three life rafts. The Coast Guard says a Good Samaritan vessel was on scene, and Petty Officer Kelly Parker said the plan is for all 46 crew members to board the Spar Canis. A Coast Guard spokesman said the crew members were off the 220-foot fishing vessel Alaska Juris, which was taking on water Tuesday morning. The ship is sinking near Kiska Isl...
WRANGELL – Events for the 7th Annual Bearfest are already underway, with the first two workshops and symposium presented yesterday at the Nolan Center. The annual activity was started in 2010 by Sylvia Ettefagh, an outfitter with Alaska Vistas and commercial fisherman. Drawing a number of notable speakers and participants each year, Bearfest serves to highlight the local bear population, particularly that found at nearby Anan Wildlife Observatory. About 30 miles southeast of Wrangell, the o...
WRANGEL – Though a crisis in the local water supply has subsided, Wrangell remains in a state of conservation through most of the rest of summer. The City and Borough Assembly formally declared a state of disaster in a special meeting held July 19, after ready water reserves had fallen to a fraction of capacity. Problems with the water treatment plant’s filtration process meant supply could not keep up with demand, and early last week local seafood processors and the wider public were asked to reduce consumption. Efficiencies undertaken by bot...
The Petersburg Borough Assembly unanimously passed three ordinances in their final reading dealing with marijuana at its meeting Monday. One prohibited the smoking of marijuana at a properly licensed marijuana retail establishment and one added fines for violating marijuana regulations. The other ordinance added marijuana regulations to the Municipal Code, now that marijuana is legal in Alaska and the borough, even though an opt-out vote will take place this fall. “This ordinance, and I think it is a very carefully crafted and thoughtful o... Full story
The Petersburg Borough Assembly voted unanimously to pass a resolution opposing a state sales tax and favor a state income tax. Governor Bill Walker proposed the idea of a 3 percent statewide sales tax on July 11, during the fifth special session of the 29th Legislature. The proposal was his alternative to an income tax he spoke of earlier this year as an option to combat the state’s severe financial crisis. According to the resolution, 110 of 164 municipalities in Alaska currently levy a sales tax. Assembly member Bob Lynn said he liked the r... Full story
The Petersburg Ranger District held a local celebration to recognize the 50th anniversary of the National Historic Preservation Act last week and over 80 people attended the event. The celebration took place on Friday in the form of a picnic at the Three Lakes Shelter out the road. U.S. Forest Service employees treated guests to interpretive hikes and grilled hot dogs for lunch. Joni Johnson, a USFS botanist and ecologist provided plant identification walks and taught some youngsters how to age... Full story
Editor's note: Part two of a two-part series The idea of setting a tolerance when dealing with hard drugs and addiction in Petersburg might seem odd. But tackling the problems associated with drugs will take more than relying on law enforcement alone, it's a "systemic problem," according to local Police Chief Kelly Swihart. "It really is a multifaceted issue that the community is going to have to put their foot down, set their level of tolerance and then be committed and follow through," he...
If you see a group of kids walking around looking at their phones, odds are good they are chasing monsters playing Pokémon GO. The app available on iPhone and Android devices mixes the real world with the virtual world of Pokémon, and it’s no exaggeration to say it’s taken the world by storm. The game was made available earlier this month, and quickly started making headlines. It also got a lot of people like John Samuel Knight outside getting exercise. “It’s right there in the middle of the road,” he says after finding a Pokémon by Petersburg...
State House hopeful Sheila Finkenbinder visited town last weekend to meet locals and garner support for her campaign opposing House District 35, Democrat Jonathan Kreiss-Tompkins in the upcoming election. "I was thinking the other day of the things I did before my opponent was born," she said. "Grew up, went to college, married, had kids." Finkenbinder's main message to voters is the fact she has experience her opponent does not, including proven experience in job creation and economic...
The 41st Republican National Convention came to order on Monday and representing the largest state in regards to area, the delegation from Alaska is situated in between New Hampshire and Nebraska on the convention floor. After spending a week before the convention on the Rules Committee, Peggy Wilson, former Alaska House of Representatives member and a delegate from Alaska, is excited to show her support for Donald J. Trump, the official nominee for president representing the Republican Party after the state of New York officially put him over...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) – The special session called by Gov. Bill Walker has officially ended, with no final action toward addressing Alaska’s multibillion-dollar deficit. The Senate adjourned Monday, after a gridlocked House called it quits Friday. The special session began July 11. It followed a prior special session and an extended regular session in which Walker’s tax proposals failed to gain traction. The centerpiece of Walker’s fiscal plan called for using Alaska Permanent Fund earnings to help pay for state government. It passed the Senate...
SEWARD, Alaska (AP) – A mountain goat in Alaska jumped into the ocean to get away from crowds snapping its picture, and the animal drowned when it couldn’t get back to land because of the crush of people on shore. Alaska State Troopers say it’s imperative to give animals adequate space. That didn’t happen Saturday in downtown Seward, and troopers say in an online post that it “resulted in a wild animal dying for no cause.’’ It comes amid a series of incidents of people getting too close to wildlife, including tourists in Yellowstone N...
The Alaska Marine Highway System ferry MV Columbia will remain docked in Petersburg due to a mechanical issue with the vessel’s starboard engine, according to a news release. The vessel is currently docked at the Petersburg Ferry Terminal, and the delay will take a minimum of approximately 36 hours. A technician for the engine manufacturer is being flown in from Houston, Texas to diagnose the problem and assist with repairs. The technician should be in Petersburg tomorrow afternoon (Thursday), according to Jeremy Woodrow, Alaska Department o...
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...
Petitioners desiring a vote on whether or not the borough should prohibit the cultivation and sale of recreational marijuana met their deadline last week and gathered enough signatures to put the question to a vote. Over 430 names have been verified after being turned into the borough last Friday, which is well over the required 104 signatures petitioners needed. The issue will appear on a fall ballot, but now comes the task of waiting to see whether it’s during the regular election or a special election. The petition missed the deadline for t... Full story
The office at the Petersburg Trial Court will no longer operate on Friday afternoons due to cutbacks the Alaska Court System is imposing to help save money during tight financial times. As of July 1, Magistrate Judge Desiree Burrell and her staff will be closing the office at noon, but she says the changes shouldn’t have a great impact on the community. With difficult financial times on the horizon the court system began experimenting with different ways to lower operating costs to allow employees to keep their jobs including furlough t...
In last week's Pilot it was stated Centennial Park would be getting benches, a totem pole and a covered shelter. However, those improvements will be added to the library grounds, not the park itself....
A celebration for the opening of Centennial Park, the latest addition to town and the Petersburg Public Library, took place last weekend with around 100 people showing up for the event. Locals gathered on the Birch Street boardwalk were treated to Janet Holten singing "Alaska's Flag," and a few words from Sue Paulsen before Polly Lee took center stage. Lee gave a brief history of the property, and spoke of the importance it held to her and her late husband, Eldor. The couple donated the land... Full story
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
Construction efforts on the municipal building are right on schedule with the demolition process going smooth so far, according to Karl Hagerman, Public Works director. "Actually, it's going along fairly well," he said. "The contractor is continuing to do demolition, but at the same time they are starting to put in new items." The job is a joint venture between two contractors, and they have already completed some underground plumbing and installation of interior concrete slabs. The phased const...
The entangled humpback whale being tracked by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries Marine Mammal Stranding Network lost its tracking gear two week’s ago, leaving biologists with no way of keeping tabs on it. Members of the Stranding Network also have no idea what the status of entanglement currently is. On the day researchers lost tracking ability, the entangled marine mammal was sighted and a crew was preparing for another attempt to remove the gear. However, t...
Petersburg Borough voters may get their chance to have a say on whether or not commercial cultivation and retail sale of recreational marijuana is allowed later this year. Last Wednesday, an initiative petition was filed with the borough, saying the community should have a local vote to determine the fate of the marijuana industry in Petersburg, according to a resolution received by borough clerk Debra Thompson. The initiative and referendum application, sent to the borough on June 22, asked, “Should Petersburg Borough prohibit the c... Full story
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
Navigating the Wrangell Narrows can be tricky, if not treacherous, depending on the vessel size and time of year. On June 14, Britta Adams of Ketchikan became the first known individual to swim the body of water from south to north. "I just knew that I had a tide, and I had six hours," she says. "My goal was to get from Marker 1 to Marker 42, the end of Pinball Alley, and everything beyond that was just a bonus." The water was 48 degrees when Adams jumped in at 4:45 a.m., and 15 minutes later... Full story
The Petersburg Lutheran Church pastor Mike Schwarte and his family are leaving town this week to pursue a new life in Alabama. He was assigned to Petersburg's Saint Catherine of Siena Catholic Church in 1999 and later was employed with the Petersburg Police Department and worked as a commercial pilot for Pacific Wing. Most recently he's pastored the Petersburg Lutheran Church for over 7 years. Schwarte's wife Ying was accepted into a highly competitive Ph.D. program at the Auburn University...
