Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 28
In the 48 hours prior to 11 A.M. on Wednesday, 6.63 inches of rain fell over Petersburg, according to Meteorologist Caleb Cravens with the Juneau Weather Service. An atmospheric river, powered by moisture from the Pacific Ocean, moved in over Southeast Alaska and dumped rain over the region, said Cravens. In Petersburg, the bulk of that rain fell on Dec. 1. A record breaking 4.38 inches of rain came down on Tuesday, according to Cravens. The previous rainfall record for Dec. 1 was set in 2011...
The sun rises over Petersburg Wednesday morning, coloring the cloudy sky purple and orange....
WRANGELL - Former Wrangell Sentinel owner Larry Persily has agreed to buy the weekly newspaper from Petersburg couple Ron and Anne Loesch, who have owned it for 17 years. Depending on the schedule for the closing agreement and transition details, Persily will take over Jan. 1 or Feb. 1. "My wife and I started in Alaska journalism with the Sentinel in 1976, and it just feels right to buy the paper at this time and help build on its 118-year history," Persily said. Sentinel staffers Caleb...
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...
December 3, 1920 Inaugurating the new winter mail schedule, the gas boat Trygve went to Wrangell on Wednesday and returned with mail from the states. Hogue and Tveten have been awarded the contract and this service will consist of 6 trips between Petersburg and Wrangell and 4 trips between Petersburg, Wrangell and Ketchikan between the 1st of December and the 31st of March. November 30, 1945 Petersburg is one of the high towns of the Territory in purchases of E Bonds in this final Victory Loan Drive, according to the latest figures released by...
In February 1946, the S.S. Yukon ran aground near Seward. The passengers on board were thrown into cold, oily water as they waited to be rescued. One of those passengers was Art Hammer, this year's Christmas tree lighter. Hammer, 99, was born on July 7, 1921. He attended school in Petersburg and graduated from Petersburg High School in 1939. Three years later in 1942, he enlisted with the United States Army and served until 1946. He had just been discharged when the S.S. Yukon went down. Hammer...
Mickey (Denise Gubernick) and Minnie Mouse (Rebecca Anderson) make their way down Nordic Dr. on Friday....
Wade Hatfield and Santa Claus take a good look at each other during the Christmas tree lighting ceremony....
I'm a newspaper addict. I can't help myself. I love reading newspapers, printed on newsprint, in color or in black and white. Smaller community newspapers, like the Petersburg Pilot are of more interest to me. On family vacations, I buy every newspaper I can find in convenience stores or gas stations. Sometimes co-publisher Anne drives while I take in the news from the towns we drive through. I have this theory that stories in every community newspaper are much the same, just with different...
Concerns not resolved To the Editor: Dear Senator Murkowski, You may recall my question at your rally at the Sons of Norway hall in Petersburg some time ago. I questioned the wisdom of drafting legislation that would transfer ownership of large tracts of land divided along racial and ethnic lines without consultation with professionals who have studied these matters in depth. As we see throughout the world, dividing lands such as this bill proposes to do, is inherently prone to lasting...
Two Petersburg residents are facing charges after accusing a Petersburg Police Department officer of sexual misconduct. James R. Vick and Julie C. Ruhle claimed that Officer Louis Waechter allegedly touched Ruhle inappropriately while arresting her on charges of driving under the influence on Sept. 28, but body cam footage of the interaction does not support the claim, according to the court complaint. Vick and Ruhle now face a misdemeanor class A charge for knowingly giving false information to...
November 24— Authorities responded to a disturbance at a location on N. Nordic Dr. Suspicious activity was observed at a location on S. 2nd St. November 25— A sex offender registered with the Petersburg Police Department. A suspicious vehicle was parked at a location on Airport Access Rd. It belonged to a family who were taking pictures of the moon. Extra patrols were requested on 2nd St. and in the downtown area. Authorities responded to a dangerous driver reported at the one mile mark of Mitkof Highway, but were unable to locate the vehicle....
Nov. 10 – Jesse Thomas Pilcher failed to appear at arraignment on charges of minor in possession, DUI, driving without driver’s license and open container. The court ordered a $50 bench warrant for Pilcher. Nov. 12 – Superior Court Judge Carey presided at the bail hearing for Kazmira Manske. The court reduced bail to zero, imposed a 3rd party custodian and released the defendant with conditions. Nov. 13 – The court issued a $50 bench warrant against Brandon R. Thomassen who failed to appear at a trial call hearing. The court issued a $50 ben...
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...
Devon Guthrie is fascinated by cars, but never understood how they worked. Then he saw a picture of an old 1951 CJ-3A Willys Jeep sitting in a lot in Skagway. Now it sits in the Petersburg High School shop where Guthrie works to refurbish it each morning. "I've always been interested in cars, but never been able to learn about them," said Devon. "This is one of the ways I can learn." His dad, Alex Guthrie, also had a Jeep when he was younger. After talking to the owner of the Jeep, who was a...
The Park and Recreation Center's Aquatic Center opened to the public on Nov. 23 following temporary repairs in the boiler room. Initial contractor estimates projected the pool to reopen on a temporary basis in anywhere from three to four months, according to Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht. He said the contractors were able to find parts and materials much sooner than anticipated, though some had to be air freighted to town from the East Coast. "Slowly, but surely, the parts rolled in," said...
Fish factor will return next week....
WRANGELL - Due to stormy weather Wrangell saw through the night and morning of Monday and Tuesday, according to Wrangell Municipal Light & Power, some trees fell onto power lines out Zimovia Highway and caused some outages on Dec. 1. A Facebook post from the City and Borough of Wrangell announced that power was lost between 9-mile and 13-mile of the highway. Rod Rhoades, WLM&P director, said that they received reports of two fallen trees out the road, at 11.5-mile and 11.75-mile. Rhoades said...
Matt Pawuk put on a festive sweater, hopped on his unicycle and rode to the Christmas tree lighting ceremony....
The 2021 preseason terminal run forecast for Stikine River large Chinook salmon is 9,900 fish. The forecast is below the lower end of the Escapement Goal Range (EGR) of 14,000 to 28,000 fish. The 2020 terminal run size was 11,750 large Chinook salmon with an escapement of 10,670 fish. The 2021 preseason terminal run forecast for Taku River large Chinook salmon is 10,300 fish. The forecast is below the lower end of the EGR of 19,000 to 36,000 fish. The 2020 terminal run size was 15,980 large Chinook salmon with an escapement of 15,590 fish....
FAIRBANKS, Alaska (AP) — A group of Alaska communities collecting remote sales tax is projected to take in between $8 million and $10 million in new revenue this year. The 33 communities are part of the Alaska Remote Sellers Sales Tax Commission formed by the Alaska Municipal League in November 2019, KTVF-TV reported Saturday. The league was formed to help local governments statewide collect sales tax from purchases made from outside Alaska. Most of the taxes are collected from online sales, but can also be applied to phone purchases. The U...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — The results of Alaska’s general election were certified Monday, the Division of Elections announced. Certification followed a review of ballots, voter registers and other materials by a bipartisan board. Certification initially was targeted for Nov. 25. Nationally, state-by-state certification of results has generated interest as President Donald Trump and some supporters have sought to sow doubt about the outcome of his race, won by Democrat Joe Biden. Alaska was among the states Trump won. In a tight Anchorage House rac...
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...
