Sorted by date Results 126 - 150 of 191
WRANGELL — In last week’s assembly meeting, Borough Manager Lisa Von Bargen reported that the city had recently been informed by the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation that they had surpassed allowable levels of HAA5 in the water supply. HAA5, or Haloacetic Acids, is a byproduct of organic material in the water being treated with chlorine during the disinfection process. “It is important to remember organic material is always present in the source water treated for Wrang...
The Wrangell School Board held a special meeting on Wednesday, Sept. 9, to continue their discussion of a formal reprimand and improvement plan for the superintendent. Late last August, Superintendent Debbe Lancaster and several district staff members went on a trip to Juneau to purchase supplies to prepare the district for the upcoming school year. This was in violation of a district travel ban during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as done without board approval. The planned use of CARES Act funding for some of the purchases was also...
WRANGELL - The Wrangell School Board held a special meeting Monday, Aug. 24, to discuss recent travel and purchases made by the superintendent and school staff. Last week, Superintendent Debbe Lancaster and three other members of the school district traveled to Juneau for a shopping trip. This was to acquire some key items related to reopening the schools and COVID-19 mitigation, she said. There were several reasons this was a topic of discussion for the board, among them being a lack of...
WRANGELL - Shea Siegert, campaign manager for Alaskans for Better Elections, recently spoke to the Wrangell Sentinel about their organization. With limited opportunities for in-person events due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he said, they are trying to get the word out about their campaign in any way they can. Their campaign, he said, is to make some big changes to the way elections are run in the state of Alaska. "These are really important for Alaskans because we are facing some big problems with...
WRANGELL - Wrangell's annual coho and halibut derbies are just around the corner. The coho salmon derby begins tomorrow, Aug. 28, and will run until Sept. 7. The halibut derby, meanwhile, will take place from Sept. 4 to Sept. 7. Last year, in the 2019 fishing derbies, over 220 tickets were sold to participants. For those participating in the derbies, weigh-in stations will be located at the Chamber of Commerce office from Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., or the harbor master's office...
WRANGELL - In March, when the COVID-19 pandemic first began to impact Alaska, many local businesses and organizations in Wrangell shut down. While many groups saw the time as an opportunity to wait and see how the pandemic would change things in the community, the Wrangell Salvation Army took the opportunity to renovate and upgrade. Now that they and other local groups are as close to business-as-usual as they can be in this time, the Salvation Army wanted to remind people struggling through...
WRANGELL - Last week, four people died in a car wreck in Petersburg. Among them were two Wrangellites, Siguard and Helen Decker, 21-years-old and 19-years-old. Their deaths shook the community, which has come together in a variety of ways to express their grief and support for the Decker family. A GoFundMe page was put together by the United Fishermen of Alaska, to raise money in their memory. As of Tuesday morning, Aug. 4, $161,273 has been raised. "The initial $10,000 in funds raised will go...
WRANGELL - Three new cases of COVID-19 were announced in Wrangell over a period of four days this past week. This has brought the total number of cases of the virus in town up to 12. The first case in this string, case no. 10, was announced Friday, July 24. During the initial announcement, it was not known if this case was from a local or a nonresident. This information was updated the next day, July 25, with the announcement of case no. 11. Both cases 10 and 11 were confirmed to be Wrangell...
WRANGELL - The Wrangell Ranger District is beginning the planning process for a restoration of the Roosevelt Harbor area. The harbor, located on Zarembo Island west of Wrangell, is graded inadequately and has poor drainage. According to a document provided by District Ranger Clint Kolarich, this leaves the site and the harbor itself vulnerable to pollutants and erosion. A rough outline of the plan is to add base surface material to the existing grade of the existing Forest Service...
WRANGELL - "Concern" is a common theme in the COVID-19 pandemic. People are concerned about their health, their jobs, getting their kids back into school, and the economic prospects of their community, among other things. Wrangell resident Kassee Schlotzhauer wants to help ensure that getting enough to eat is not one such concern, through Wrangell's Subsistence Giving Project. "My family and me, we like to subsistence hunt, fish, gather for our family for the winters," she said. "This last year...
WRANGELL - In early June, the Wrangell Sentinel received several emails regarding one of the city's police officers, Paul Jay Huerta. One of these emails linked to a news article and video, alleging that Huerta left his previous job in California for harassing a suspect. Recently, city officials informed the paper that Huerta was no longer employed by the Wrangell Police Department. However, the city has not provided information as to why he resigned. A July 9, 2018 article by the Desert Sun...
WRANGEL - Several local fishermen have been volunteering their time and energy, more so than usual, at Wrangell's sole operating seafood processor. With the decision by Trident Seafoods to not operate this summer, Sea Level Seafoods has been the only local option available for fishermen to process their catches. However, thanks to a number of factors brought on by COVID-19, Sea Level has been shorthanded. This has led to a number of fishermen volunteering to help process crab, as well as catch...
WRANGELL - The number of COVID-19 cases in Wrangell has increased since last week's edition of the Wrangell Sentinel. As of Tuesday, June 23, there are eight total cases of the virus in town. The fourth case was announced on Wednesday, June 17. According to a joint press release from the city and SEARHC, the patient was an unnamed traveller. He was identified through the airport testing program and is currently in quarantine. "So far, the State's airport testing program has proven to be...
WRANGELL - After last week's announcement of the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in Wrangell, two other cases were confirmed shortly after. Wrangell now has three total cases of the virus. One case has been declared recovered. However, there is some question about the source of the third case. Public Health officials state that Wrangell's third case was a contact with the first case, but the first case said she does not know how that could be. The first case was announced on Sunday evening,...
WRANGELL - During the June 9 meeting of the borough assembly, Wrangell resident Ryan Howe was appointed to fill a vacant position. A seat on the assembly was left empty after Drew Larrabee announced his resignation, brought about by his plans to move to pursue a new career opportunity. The unexpired term, now filled by Howe, comes to an end this October. However, the appointment of Howe has led to some question of whether or not the city violated the Open Meetings Act. The Open Meetings Act,...
WRANGELL - On Sunday evening, June 7, the first positive case of COVID-19 was announced in the community of Wrangell. A joint press release from the city and SEARHC reports that the patient is an unnamed female. She is a resident of Wrangell, according to the press release, and is asymptomatic. Contact tracing, trying to determine who might have come into contact with the patient and may potentially be at risk, is currently ongoing. "SouthEast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC)...
WRANGELL - The Wrangell Borough Assembly met last Wednesday evening, June 3, for a special meeting. City administration was wanting to enter a Memorandum of Understanding with SEARHC to provide COVID-19 testing for Sea Level Seafood employees. The total cost for the proposed memorandum, according to the meeting's agenda packet, comes out to $60,000. This amount provides some padding in case of emergency, the actual cost of the memorandum is anticipated to be $52,500. "In order to ensure an...
WRANGELL — The local Resource Advisory Committee, which covers the areas of Wrangell, Petersburg, and Kake, held a series of meetings last week. The RAC, for those who are unaware, is a committee of residents of these three areas that advise the Forest Service on what projects to pursue. There were a variety of interesting and pertinent projects covered in the recent RAC meetings. In their meeting on May 27, the RAC elected committee co-chairs Kim Powell and Patrick Fowler. They also approved of a proposal to spend $40,000 on dock repairs in t...
WRANGELL - Over Memorial Day weekend, Muskeg Meadows started up their weekend golf tournaments for another season. This first tournament of the season was sponsored by Wrangell IGA. There were 20 golfers on the first day of the tournament on Saturday. First place went to a team consisting of Kathleen Harding, Wayne Harding, Doug Nelson, and Drew Eyon. Second place went to a team consisting of Spenser Stavee, Aaron Powell, Jonathan Spitler, and Jim Brooks. Brooks had the straightest drive of the...
WRANGELL — It was a relatively light meeting of the Wrangell Port Commission last Thursday evening, May 7. There was only one agenda item for the commission to consider, a request by GCI to relocate the landing for a submarine cable. The telecommunication company currently has a submarine cable come onto the beach next to the community garden area, near City Park. From there, according to the meeting’s agenda packet, the cable hits aerial lines and goes to its hub building, and also leaves the beach area and runs towards Petersburg. How...
WRANGELL - Local writer Vivian Faith Prescott recently announced the publication of her newest book, Silty Water People. The book is a collection of some of her oldest poems, she said, and is a look at "the effects of assimilation" on Wrangell families and the community as a whole. The poems range from the serious, to the humorous, to the intimate. The ideas of identity and culture have always fascinated her, Prescott said. She holds a doctorate in cross cultural studies. Silty Water People,...
WRANGELL - With Health Mandate 16, part of Governor Mike Dunleavy's plan to reopen Alaska's economy safely during the COVID-19 pandemic, communities across the state are considering what the near future may look like. Revenues have fallen for the city and businesses have had to get creative to stay open. While there is optimism to be found amongst some business owners, uncertainties loom for the economy in general. Alan Cummings, of All In Charters and Grand View B&B, said that they are looking...
WRANGELL – The board of directors of the Southeast Alaska Power Agency held a teleconference meeting March 31, to hear an annual operations plan update as well as some operating budget increases, among other items. SEAPA provides hydroelectric power to the communities of Wrangell, Petersburg, and Ketchikan. The board is made up of five voting directors and alternates, who are appointed by their respective communities annually to represent them. The operations plan update, according to the meetin...
WRANGELL – The Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium, according to several members of Wrangell's local government, has been doing a very good job of communicating with them during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Assembly Member David Powell said that communications between SEARHC, Mayor Steve Prysunka, and Borough Manager Lisa Von Bargen have been taking place almost daily. Prysunka and Von Bargen are really on top of things, he said. Assembly Member Drew Larrabee added that, in his opinion...
