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Local physician Dr. Greg Salard said he expects his full privileges to be restored at the Wrangell Medical Center (WMC) following a review hearing held last week between him and the hospital’s board of directors. “I fully expect to get my permanent privileges back,” Salard said. Salard is employed through Alaska Island Community Services (AICS), and was contracted to work at the WMC with provisional privileges through early February 2011. After his contract expired, Salard was required to reapply to the WMC for permanent privileges to conti...
At its meeting Tuesday night, the Wrangell Borough Assembly approved a proposed budget of nearly $29.4 million to build the new hospital. The Assembly also approved the future installation of a low-slope roof on the new hospital, though Assembly members agreed it was not the preferred roof option. The budget passed Tuesday night sits at nearly $1.8 million less than the current projected cost of building the hospital. That budget is, however, in the amount approved by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) last August. At that...
The Wrangell High School Music Department put on a talent show Feb. 24 that included nearly 30 acts ranging from singing performances to stand-up comedy and Roger Miller, pictured above, playing his electric guitar. Winners of the talent show were named in three categories: elementary-school-aged contestants, middle-school-and high-school contestants and adult contestants. Jade Balansag won for the elementary category, Kayla Hay and Victoria Ingram won in the middle school and high school...
Feb. 29, 1912: William Neill returned on the Jefferson from the Sound where he had been on business regarding the new river boat to ply on the Stikine. Plans for the new boat were drawn up by L. E. Geary and company of Seattle, noted designers of speed boats. The Telegraph II will be a twin screw, funnel stern, shallow draft boat, 64 by 14 feet and will be powered with two 32 horsepower, 4 cylinder N&S motors to drive her against the current of the Stikine. Work on the hull started Monday. They expect to have the boat ready for work as soon as...
A lack of information about the elk on Etolin Island sparked a collaborative study between the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADFG) and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) last year. With the use of tracking collars, the study attempts to collect more data on the non-native species, such as population numbers, their habitat and their effect on the environment and other animals. Last week, ADFG Aerial Wildlife Biologist Richard Lowell came to Wrangell to discuss the elk study as part of the Chautauqua lecture series at the Nolan Center. Since...
Monday, Feb. 20 -Caller reported thief, officer responded. -Agency assist, DOT notified. -Citizen assist, officer assisted. Tuesday, Feb. 21 -Civil standby requested. -Citizen assist, officers notified. Wednesday, Feb. 22 -Business owner reported vehicle parking in 15-mintue parking. Officer responded and vehicle was gone when he arrived. -Parking complaint. -Officer requested to unlock vehicle, officer responded. -Parking complaint. -Caller reported receiving messages on phone, officer responded. Thursday, Feb. 23 -Report of mirror stolen off...
To the Editor: I have a comment on the article in the January 12, 2012 Wrangell sentinel regarding David Jack’s concerns over spending of capital reserves at Wrangell Medical Center in relation to the WMC Renovation project. He indicated “several assembly members have expressed concern over the spending of the hospital’s reserves.” Although I am no longer on the board of Wrangell Medical Center and therefore do not know what current expenditures are being paid from reserves, I must respond. Wrangell Medical Center had $3,000,000 in reserve...
The City and Borough of Wrangell drafted a plan that aims to enhance local industry and boost economic development throughout the town and Southeast Alaska. The plan maps out six local projects that, with the help of additional funding and collaboration with state and federal agencies, can be improved and stimulate the economy. The Wrangell Economic Cluster Initiative Plan is a result of a process started by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) last fall that aims to revitalize all of Southeast Alaska’s economy. According to Wrangell E...
The Wrangell Medical Center (WMC) and the Local Community Preparedness Committee (LEPC) is planning to stage its annual emergency disaster drill on the flats of the Stikine River this year. Janet Buness, who works on emergency preparedness at the hospital has been tasked with planning the drill. Buness said she is hoping to stage a boat wreck on the flats with 30 “victims.” The drill should take place in late summer, Buness said, and should be a collaborative effort between WMC, the fire and police departments as well as other community org...
Wrangell resident Shawna Buness and self-proclaimed Food Network fanatic was having a hard time finding someone in town to make her wedding cake in January. So she got online and starting watching videos on the art of cake-making. “I thought, you know, I could do this,” Buness said. While she didn’t end up baking her own wedding cake, Buness bought the supplies for the local resident who did make it, and started playing around with the fondant — a pliable icing used for cakes, cupcakes and other...
State fishery managers project a lower Alaska salmon harvest this year, due to an expected decrease in those hard to predict pinks. The total catch forecast by the Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game is 132 million salmon, down 25% from the 177 million fish taken in 2011. The statewide breakdown is 120,000 Chinook salmon (in areas outside Southeast, where catches are dictated by treaty with Canada); 38.4 million sockeye salmon, a decline of 4%; 4.3 million coho (similar to last year); 19 million chums, 12% higher; and 70.2 million pinks,...
The buzz in the hallways, here at the capital, is all about Education funding. We all recognize that if we’re going to keep America’s workforce strong, today’s students need to be getting the best education possible. There are those who believe that the state hasn’t raised education funding in several years. This is not so. In fact, in Fiscal Year 2009 the House of Representatives instituted forward funding education with a three year increase that just ended two years ago. In addition to incr...
Alcohol and marijuana use is more prevalent than the use of harmful legal products, such as over-the-counter medicines and inhalants used to get high, among the Wrangell students that participated in a survey late last year. The student survey is part of the Harmful Legal Product Prevention Project (HLP) by the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation (PIRE) and Alaska nonprofit Akeela. The surveys are being conducted in other rural communities throughout Alaska, and will help determine if the project’s adapted model for community p...
Last week, residents with a landline received an automated phone call asking them about their interest in bio fuels — an alternative form of energy that could be used to heat homes. The Feb. 23 phone survey was conducted by the Southeast Alaska Conservation Council (SEACC) and asked both Wrangell and Petersburg residents two things: what their primary source of heating is, and if they would consider using a locally manufactured bio fuel product to heat their home. According to the survey results, Wrangell was more open to bio fuel use than P...