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Abe Aulbach went out in style, smashing a state record for the 100-yard freestyle race set in 1998, as he and many of his teammates took their last competitive lap in Anchorage at the state competition, with the tiny team more than holding its own against schools that dwarf its roster. Aulbach, swimmer extraordinaire by the collective opinion of all the coaches at the state meet, who named him outstanding male athlete of the event, brought in Petersburg's only first place prizes for the 50- and... Full story
Interim CFO Doran Hammett told the Petersburg Medical Center board at a special meeting Monday that a draft cost report revealed some $928,000 was due to Medicare. Though PMC still has $380,000 on hand from a mid-year overpayment by Medicare to pay the bill, the amount due was unexpectedly high and prompted further investigation by Hammett and the consultant who prepares the reports, Martin Michiels of Health Care Consulting Services, LLC. Hammett told the Pilot on Wednesday that after recalculations by Michiels, the hospital now expects to... Full story
As Christmas draws ever closer, people are shopping for friends, families and strangers as another season of Operation Christmas Child closes, set to send shoeboxes of sundries across the world. The program, operated under the international auspices of Samaritan’s Purse, a non-denominational evangelical Christian organization, has been running since 1993, aiming to deliver boxes of toys and essentials to children of impoverished nations around the globe — since its inception, the group has reported more than 113 million shoeboxes sent to famili... Full story
November 14, 1914 – The U.S. Transport or cable ship Burnside arrived in port yesterday morning on her way south from a trip to Sitka and elsewhere, where repairs to the cable were thought necessary. Mr. Winter the Chief Officer of repair work when interviewed said that the trip had practically been useless from the fact that in fourteen days only one day had been considered safe to work on the cable. Due to the continuous stormy weather in that part of Alaska Mr. Winter said that further work on the cable for the present had been abandoned. I...
Don Spigelmyre just finished his first salmon season as Icicle Seafood's new Fleet Manager for Southeast Alaska. A native Michigander, Spigelmyre brings 22.5 years of experience with the Coast Guard to his new post. "I was a damage controlman (with the Coast Guard). That was my primary job. Basically firefighting underway, teaching people how to patch their boats up if they're sinking," he said. He was stationed in Petersburg with the Coast Guard from 1999-2003. It was at that time he and his...
It’s the most wonderful time of the year or at least the officers and volunteers at the Salvation Army are working to ensure that’s so for local families who may not be able to afford food and gifts this holiday season. Lieutenants John Birks and Mysti Birks will be working with board members and volunteers to assemble Thanksgiving food boxes for 62 households representing 154 individuals this year. The boxes will be distributed Nov. 25 in time for families to make preparations for the big meal on Thanksgiving Day. Sign-ups for Christmas foo...
The right to trial by jury developed over centuries in England beginning with Viking raiders. Trial by jury was a concession the English barons extracted from King John in 1215 in the Magna Carta. On July 4, 1776, members of the Continental Congress signed the Declaration of Independence, declaring that the United States of America was dissolving its “political bands” with Great Britain because King George III had denied the colonists their rights as British citizens, including “in many cases, the benefits of trial by jury.” Benjamin Frankli...
November 5 An officer spoke with the owner of an abandoned vehicle discovered by police. A caller reported pushing an individual who got in the caller’s face. November 6 An officer responded to a report of an individual that struck a vehicle then left the scene. Police received multiple calls on a borough-wide power outage. A caller reported a suspicious odor. November 7 A civil concern was reported to police. Police received a report of possible harassment. A caller requested assistance with transport. A caller reported the theft of a v...
Many residents in Petersburg woke up on Nov. 6 to discover a power outage, following damage caused by a storm to Ketchikan’s Bailey Substation the previous evening. Power across the entire transmission system was down, affecting Ketchikan and Wrangell for most of the morning as well. A storm the previous evening featured winds between 43 and 61 miles per hour by 7 p.m. Gusts topping 90 mph were also reported at Ketchikan International Airport. “We started getting calls in,” recounted Andy Donato, electric division director of Ketchikan Publi...
Viking volleyball got a taste of the years to come on Nov. 4, when they had a friendly match with past and future rivals in Wrangell. The teams haven’t met on the courts for several years, as a higher student headcount kept Petersburg in the larger 3A districts – but now that the student body is shrinking again, the neighboring Wolves will be more often seen stalking the fields, taking the place of departing foes in Sitka and Mt. Edgecumbe as the school changes to 2A. But if their recent spar is any measure of what’s to come, the Vikings will...
Viking wrestlers went for broke again in Sitka, going first or nothing when it came to the championship rounds of the unconventional double elimination tournament and taking three titles for Petersburg. Buddy Stalmach, 113; John Brooks, 145; and Billy Ware, 152, all took tops in their divisions, wrestling undefeated through the ranks. “We didn’t bring everybody — we left Brandon (Ware), 192, at home, but he could have probably taken first or second,” Coach Dan Van Swearengen said. “John Brooks, he went back up to 145 pounds instead of 138, w...
Veterans were honored for their service around town Tuesday, Nov. 11 in celebration of Veterans Day. Students from the elementary, middle and high schools as well as many community members attended an assembly at the high school Tuesday morning. Honored veterans sat front and center with family members to listen to speeches and music performed by students of all ages. The audience was treated to information ranging from the historical background of the holiday given by the high schoolers to... Full story
Teleconferencing from the Wrangell and Petersburg assembly chambers last Thursday, members of the Thomas Bay Power Commission (TBPC) decided to call it a year. The TPBC was the acting body for the Thomas Bay Power Authority, operating Tyee Hydroelectric Plant until the operations were transferred this summer to Southeast Alaska Power Authority. Since then, the TBPC has found itself with little to do beyond facilitating that change. But because of the unique connection the commission presents for the communities of Wrangell and Petersburg,...
The Petersburg Public Library was given a four-star rating this month by the Library Journal. The library was one of eight that ranked in the state. Borough librarian Tara Alcock said the library has received a star rating five times since the system was introduced in 2008, but this is their first four-star rating. In previous years, they’ve received three stars. "It’s exciting to see we’re one of the top eight libraries in the state and that we went from three to four stars. I was really excited to see that," Alcock said. The Library Journ...
With a number of closely-contested initial results for the general elections on Nov. 4, voters and candidates alike may be holding their breath as Alaska's Division of Elections began counting absentee and early votes Tuesday. The margins for several races remain slim. For a seat in the Senate, initial polling saw Republican challenger Dan Sullivan hold an 8,149-vote lead over Democratic incumbent Sen. Mark Begich. In the gubernatorial race, a mere 3,165 votes separate incumbent Gov. Sean Parnell from Independent challenger Bill Walker, whose...
Alaska’s largest employer continues to add more jobs to its roster. Commercial fishing jobs grew last year to a level not seen since the year 2000, according to the state Department of Labor. Driven primarily by an increased salmon harvest, notably from the record run of pinks, fishing jobs grew by nearly 2.5 percent last year. That brought the annual monthly average to 8,400 jobs, just 400 shy of the record over a decade ago. Seafood harvesting and processing jobs are a focus of the November Alaska Economic Trends, which breaks down the n...
Petersburg Indian Association recapped nearly a decade of work on roads and trails across Mitkof Island at the Nov. 3 assembly meeting, with Transportation Director Susan Harai presenting a video detailing the tribe’s works. Since 2006, PIA has received more than $10.2 million for the tribal transportation program, working along a master guideline scoped 20 years ahead and more specifically revised for the next five in a Tribal Transportation Improvement Plan. Money is granted through federal transportation allocations divided amongst the t...
