Sorted by date Results 2601 - 2625 of 5553
The Alaska Marine Safety Education Association (AMSEA) will offer a Fishing Vessel Drill Conductor Refresher workshop in Petersburg Mon, Feb. 5 from 8 am - 6 pm at the Tides Inn, 307 1st Street. Instructor Neil Nickerson will cover emergency procedures drills; EPIRBs, signal flares, and mayday calls; man-overboard recovery and firefighting; flooding, damage control, and dewatering pumps; immersion suits and PFDs; helicopter rescue, life rafts, abandon ship procedures, and cold-water survival skills. AMSEA’s Drill Conductor workshops meet the U...
WRANGELL — Following a clean bill of health from contaminants testing of dredge material at Shoemaker Bay, the harbor restoration project looks to be continuing on schedule. Department of Transportation and Public Facilities match grant funding in the amount of $5,000,000 was approved for the project in this year’s budget, enabling replacement of the harbor’s aging float network. The wooden float structure is in a deteriorated state, with one of its five finger piers currently unusable. Wrangell Harbor Department’s plan will be to replace...
USCG commercial fishing vessel examiners will be conducting free dockside exams in Petersburg Feb. 2-9. They take about an hour. The examiners will make a scale available at the crane dock to weigh your crab pots. During similar crab pot weighing operations our data has shown weight discrepancies between old and replacement crab pots. Please check out our new vessel specific checklist generator located at www.fishsafewest.info. This tool will allow you to print out a list of safety requirements for your vessel prior to your exam. Mandatory...
Sunday, January 14, was the warmest day on record in Petersburg for the month of January, with temperatures reaching 63 degrees, according to the National Weather Service in Juneau. What's more, the state of Alaska hit a record high on Annette Island, where it was 66 degrees, said Jake Byrd, a forecaster with the weather service. The winter heat comes after temperatures dropped well below freezing last week. "When we go from extreme cold to extreme warm like this," Byrd said, "basically what...
In April 2017, about eight months before Angel Worhatch would resign from the Petersburg Police Department, a female inmate was attempting suicide, and the nearly 20-year chief dispatcher had never stepped inside a jail cell alone. In late October, two months before she would resign, it happened again. Another apparent suicide attempt, this time by a male inmate, asking her to watch. The first attempted suicide took place on a day Worhatch was training a new dispatcher. They were going over...
Superior Court Judge William Carey said Petersburg Attorney Fred Triem, “has been repeatedly untruthful with the court and opposing counsel,” and that he, “engaged in a game of subterfuge and deceit,” in pursuing legal action over his client’s firing from Alaska Airlines. On Tuesday, Carey ruled on multiple motions in his order and ultimately dismissed the case against Alaska Airlines. Helen Lingley was terminated from her position with the airlines and in 2012 Triem filed a wrongful termination claim with the company on her behalf. Triem tol...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) – The Alaska Legislature opens a new session Tuesday amid lingering fallout from the resignation of a House member accused of inappropriate behavior toward female aides. A new member is expected to be appointed to the House this month to replace Dean Westlake, the freshman Democrat who resigned. Lawmakers have vowed to rewrite an 18-year-old policy against sexual and other harassment that critics say leaves room for interpretation. And legislators will be required to attend harassment and discrimination prevention t...
The borough’s highest electrical job once again could go to Karl Hagerman, who had pulled his name from consideration in October following the election and scrutiny of his qualifications. One assembly member and an empty search for someone else made him reconsider. In a meeting on Monday, the assembly voted 5-2 in support of making Mr. Hagerman utility director of power and light, a title comparable to electrical superintendent. The move revisits Borough Manager Steve Giesbrecht’s idea to reorganize power and light and public works, which he...
Superior Court Judge William Carey denied a request by Plaintiffs Danny Robert Thompson and Greg Richeson to have their case heard as a class action by stating the case does not meet the class action prerequisites required by state law. Carey heard oral arguments on the case in December of last year, and issued his order for Class Certification on Jan. 16. The order explains that two plaintiffs seek injunctive and declaratory relief, the return of property and general, special punitive and exemp...
The Peterburg assembly narrowly struck down a resolution to repeal a federal ruling that limits development on national forest land, a decision it made after hearing public testimony from seven people on Monday. The resolution Monday supported an end to the 2001 Roadless Rule, which protects social and ecological value and characteristics of roadless areas from construction and reconstruction, along with certain timber harvest activities, according to the United States Department of Agriculture. The borough said this resolution was brought to...
Police say a Petersburg woman was arrested on Saturday for fleeing a scene under the influence after driving a vehicle into two pedestrians in the 1100 block of South Nordic Drive. Shirlene Olson, 54, was arrested on two counts of assault in the third degree, leaving the scene of an accident and driving under the influence. Olson appeared in District Court before Magistrate Judge Desiree Burrell on Tuesday afternoon. Olson did not enter a plea and was released under conditions with $1,000 bail....
The Petersburg Police Department recently purchased a pick-up truck for about $47,000, the chief said. The borough used $47,311 of its motor pool fund in early December 2017 to purchase an officer patrol truck. The truck will be used to haul the department's portable dispatch center, along with getting access to areas outside of service area one, especially in poor weather conditions, said Police Chief Kelly Swihart. "It is capable of pulling the communications trailer in various conditions if...
After deliberation on Saturday the Alaska Board of Fisheries rejected a proposal to scrap the Southeast Alaska management plan for Dungeness crab fisheries. The BoF is currently convened in Sitka for its meeting on the region’s shellfish and finfish regulation change proposals. It meets every three years, the last one being held in Wrangell in January 2015. Starting its shellfish meeting on January 11, members took testimony for 155 different proposals related to crab, shrimp and other miscellaneous shellfish. A late comer to this year’s sla...
DOUGLAS, Alaska (AP) – An Alaska man says his dog came nose-to-nose with a wolf while they were walking at a Douglas park. The incident happened last Saturday while Peter Fellman and his wife, Jane Pierson, were walking their two dogs in Savikko Park, also referred to as Sandy Beach. Neither Fellman, his wife nor their dogs were harmed in the encounter, the Juneau Empire reported . Fellman said his dog Bingo’s benign nature allowed the group to remain unharmed. The couple was on their way to a dinner at a friend’s house when they decided to st...
WRANGELL – Radio station KSTK is now awaiting decision by the Federal Communications Commission on whether to approve a proposed acquisition by CoastAlaska, a regional service headquartered in Juneau. Applications to transfer the station's four licenses were filed with the FCC in early December, with a public comment period ending last week. If approved, Wrangell Radio Group, whose board administers the local station, would transfer KSTK's physical assets along with its licensed channels to C...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) – Alaska's population declined for the first time in 29 years as the state's oil-driven recession continued through 2017. State figures released on Wednesday listed the state's population at 737,080, the Juneau Empire reported . That's down 2,629 from 2016 and is the first decrease since 1988. The number of people moving out was only partially balanced by the number of new births. The state also had a record high in number of deaths this past year, at 4,530. ``The r...
WRANGELL- A sizable rock slide along Zimovia Highway Thursday evening temporarily blocked off access to traffic. The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities was notified of the slide at 7:30 a.m. Friday morning, and arranged with local contractors to remove the debris. One lane was opened to traffic by 9 a.m., with workers on the scene coordinating with traffic to allow movement through the area. Drivers passing through the temporary chokepoint should be prepared for a slight...
A recently proposed revision to the borough's zoning code is slated to introduce a new form of affordable housing, an expansion of the historic and industrial district, and the end of a requirement on businesses to include parking downtown, officials say. The Petersburg Borough is rolling out a fresh development code that it hopes will streamline zoning approval processes and sure-up any vague and "blurry" language that exists now. There are significant changes that, if approved, could be in...
A coffee shop fundraiser in Petersburg last week in memory of an 18-year-old girl who died in 2016 raised thousands of dollars and sparked an outpouring of online support from across the country. Guylynn Etcher, owner of Glacier Express Cafe, and Britni Birchell, owner of Common Grounds & Alaska Island Coffee, organized a fundraiser last Thursday on behalf of Molly Parks, who wanted to be a special education teacher. She was an athlete, a daughter and a sucker for the underdog. She loved...
The borough assembly held a work session on Monday to discuss a plan to impose restrictions on who's eligible for senior sales tax exemption, along with a shorter talk on a passenger fee for cruise ships. In a public discussion, hosted by the assembly to hear community member input, an agreement was made that an annual fee ought to be charged to those who'd like a sales tax exemption card. The goal would be to offset costs that go into processing exemption cards for those 65 or older. The...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) — Alaska state Sen. Mike Dunleavy plans to resign his seat to focus on running for governor. In a statement released Monday, the Wasilla Republican said the best way for him to advocate for his constituents’ values is to devote his full time and attention to ensuring that a new governor is elected this year. A Dunleavy campaign spokeswoman, Amanda Price, said the resignation will be effective Jan. 15 — the day before the new legislative session begins. State Republican party Chairman Tuckerman Babcock said he expects local...
WRANGELL - A Wrangell store owner was surprised to discover her shop had been entered during the night last week, with some items stolen. Located on the back side of the Churchill Building, Silver Liningz Boutique had apparently been broken into sometime during the evening of January 3. One of the town's newer businesses, the shop deals mainly in women's apparel, decorative coffee mugs and exotic scents. Store owner Terie Loomis had recently been working through her year-end inventory, so had a...
KETCHIKAN, Alaska (AP) — An Alaska lawmaker is seeking to change the state law that allows a person as young as 14 to marry. State Sen. Berta Gardner is planning to introduce legislation to increase the legal age of marriage to 18 in Alaska, the Ketchikan Daily News reported. The Democratic senator’s legislation would also allow emancipated minors above the age of 16 to marry. Under current state law, a person between the age of 14 and 18 can marry with permission from a superior court judge. After a hearing with the parents and the minor, the...
The police chief and deputy clerk in Petersburg announced they plan to retire in July, a decision the married couple made together after a year of pondering. The police chief, Kelly Swihart, and his wife, Melinda, the deputy borough clerk, said they plan to retire after the chief’s contract expires on June 30, he said. “We have been debating for the past year on whether or not we wanted to renew my contract in Petersburg,” said Mr. Swihart, who says his leaving is not a resignation. “Or look in other law enforcement opportunities in Alaska,...
WRANGELL - Before the 30th Alaska Legislature meets for its second regular session next Tuesday, Sen. Bert Stedman (R-Sitka) stopped in Wrangell last week to meet with constituents. Visiting with the city manager and staff on January 4, Stedman's visit came on the heels of meetings with officials in Petersburg and was to be followed by a trip to Ketchikan. "Before every session I try to come down and run through the district, talking to city hall, finding out what's going on with the city...
