Sorted by date Results 1 - 21 of 21
With polls closing at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, preliminary numbers show Wrangell had a large turnout for the 2020 election. Sarah Whittlesley-Merrit, Legislative Information Officer, told media that over 700 ballots were cast on election day. They received 732 ballots, she said, plus four special needs ballots and 23 question ballots. On top of that, she said that Wrangell saw 316 votes cast early in this election. This is a total of 1,075 ballots cast. According to the Alaska Division of Elections,...
Wrangell's Unified Command announced a new case of COVID-19 the evening of Tuesday, Nov. 3. This is Wrangell's twenty-first total case, and at the time of writing the only active one. According to the press release, this case was confirmed in a non-resident, who has been notified and is in isolation. Of the 21 total cases Wrangell has seen, 13 have been locals and eight have been non-locals. Four cases were identified through airport testing. The others were identified by a routine testing plan...
A local member of Wrangell's Emergency Operations Center recently received threats on social media, according to city officials. The COVID-19 pandemic, and governments' response to it, has been a contentious issue across the nation and at home. The EOC is a collection of city officials who are tasked with gathering information on the pandemic, keeping in touch with state officials, and helping the community organize its response. Nothing has come of these threats, according to officials, but...
The Coast Guard pulled a man out of the water last Sunday evening, Nov. 1. The incident occurred in Union Bay, near Meyers Chuck, south of Wrangell. Petty Officer Janessa Warschkow, with the Coast Guard, said that they were notified of a man in need of rescue at about 4:46 p.m. Warschkow said, in an email, that they were on-scene at 9 p.m. According to a Coast Guard press release, an air crew from Sitka and the cutter Anacapa were sent to conduct the search and rescue. A 70-year-old man was foun...
More progress has been made on the Wrangell Mariners' Memorial, but several aspects of the project have been put on hold as winter begins. Jenn Miller-Yancey, with the Wrangell Mariners' Memorial Board, reported that concrete work around the memorial has been finished for the time being. More will be done next spring, she said, as they install more light posts. While concrete work has paused, there is still work ongoing. "The material to build the actual memorial walls has arrived,"...
Last Tuesday evening, in the agenda packet for the borough assembly's meeting, was a report on Wrangell's economic conditions. The report, by Rain Coast Data, was updated this past October, and looks at a variety of aspects of the local economy. With the COVID-19 pandemic impacting many aspects of life in Wrangell, the community's economic survival has been a topic of much discussion. "In 2019, Wrangell, Alaska had 1,143 year-round equivalent jobs and nearly $50 million in workforce earnings,"...
Aug. 31: Victor James Stead was arraigned on two charges of sexual assault, assault 2, assault 3, and burglary. He entered a not guilty plea. An omnibus hearing was scheduled for Oct. 6. A calendar call was scheduled for Dec. 14. A trial was scheduled for Jan. 4. Sept. 3: Christine Abrahamson was arraigned on charges of criminal trespass. She entered a plea of not guilty. She was released O.R.. A calendar call was scheduled for Nov. 10. Sept. 8: Charges against Christine Abrahamson, of criminal trespass, were dismissed by prosecution. Sept. 9:...
Monday, Oct. 26 Agency Assist: Department of Transportation. Citizen Assist: Vehicle Unlock. Traffic Stop: Alexandra McMurren, 30, Citation issued for Failure to Stop at Stop Sign. Tuesday, Oct. 27 Agency Assist: Paper Service. Agency Assist. Traffic: Danielle Roher, 30, Citation issued for Driving without a Valid Operator’s License. Agency Assist: Census Bureau. Parking: Justin Barker, 34, Citation issued for Proper Parking Required. Wednesday, Oct. 28 Violation of Condition of Release: Petition to Revoke Probation. Agency Assist. Driving R...
Dave Leroy Cummings, 73 passed away at home with his family on Oct. 16, 2020. Dave had inoperable/untreatable cancer. Born in Tacoma, Washington on Sept. 8, 1947, he was the second child of Albert Vern and Vera joining 5-year old brother Albert (Vern) Jr. He graduated from high school in Auburn, Washington in 1965 and was in the National Guard from 1966-1972. He and Vern Jr. grew up exploring the woods, river streams, ocean shores and many lakes of the Pacific NW and SE Alaska fishing and...
Harriet Ann Bangs age 63, left this earth surrounded by family and friends on Saturday, January 18, 2020 at Swedish Hospital in Seattle, Washington. She was born March 23, 1956 in Sitka, Alaska. She joined elder siblings Becky, Ty, Ricky and Donna. The minute her parents brought her home to Wrangell her siblings adored her! Harriet brought joy and much laughter to the family. She was the baby of the family and spoiled for eight years until her three younger siblings, Wilma, Heidi and David were...
Southeast Alaskan electrical vehicle owners are hosting a one-hour knowledge sharing session outlining the economic and environmental advantages of EV ownership, including saving money, supporting the local economy, and reducing CO2 emissions. There are now several hundred EVs in both Sitka and Juneau. The fundamental advantages of EV ownership that exist in Sitka and Juneau also exist in other locations, as the presentation will outline. After the presentation, there will be a Q&A session for...
Last week, the Alaska Marine Highway Reshaping Group released a report it had been working on for several months throughout the pandemic. Even though this group has finished it’s task, I will continue to work to find ways to increase ferry service and reliability throughout Southeast Alaska and the rest of our state, at a level that is sustainable, functional, safe, and efficient. The Reshaping Group made several recommendations, many of which focused on the need for the ferry system and the ferry budget to focus on long-term service goals, r...
Construction of the new Wrangell Medical Center is nearly done, according to a press release from the SouthEast Alaska Health Consortium. They are about 85 percent complete with the project, the release reads, and the entire project remains on budget and slightly ahead of schedule. The hospital, according to previous reports, is aiming to be ready for use by early-2021. Drywall work is nearly complete, according to the press release. Siding on the hospital's exterior is finished everywhere...
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today [Oct. 28] announced a final Alaska Roadless Rule that exempts the Tongass National Forest from the 2001 provision that prohibited road construction, road reconstruction and timber harvests. The Record of Decision identifies the selected alternative, provides the rationale for the decision, and explains that the exemption does not authorize any specific projects in Alaska. Proposed projects must continue to comply with the 2016 Tongass Land...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) – The U.S. Coast Guard has assigned its icebreaker Polar Star to the Arctic in December instead of its normal role in supporting Antarctic affairs. The Polar Star’s change in deployment was due to concerns stemming from the coronavirus pandemic. The announcement also echoes concerns from military commanders in Alaska about security in the region, the Juneau Empire reported Friday. “The Arctic is no longer an emerging frontier, but is instead a region of growing national importance,” said Vice Adm. Linda Fagan, command...
After a salmon season that successfully fished its way through a pandemic and upturned markets, the value of Alaska salmon permits is ticking up in two regions while toppling in others. Permit values are derived by the state Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission based on the average value of four permit sales. One of the uppers is the bellwether fishery at Bristol Bay where driftnet permits are showing good gains after a strong fishing season, despite a disappointing base sockeye price of $.70 a pound, down by nearly half from last year....
The Wrangell Lady Wolves travelled to Klawock this past weekend for a set of volleyball games against the Chieftains. The three games were hard-fought and all were close, but they all went to Klawock. The first game started with both teams neck-and-neck for a significant portion of the game. Wrangell held a narrow lead at several points, but was never able to build off of it. The Chieftains always managed to come back and take a narrow lead of their own. The final score was 25-23, Klawock. During the second game, the Lady Wolves took the lead...
SITKA, Alaska (AP) – An Alaska island village plans to use an advanced version of an ancient renewable energy system to lower its high energy costs. The village of Kake wants to build a biomass district heating system to warm its public buildings while saving the community nearly $100,000 annually in energy costs, Alaska’s Energy Desk reported Tuesday. Kake was awarded a federal Department of Agriculture grant to design its biomass system. The village is now seeking funding. The system planned for Kake, on Kupreanof Island south of Juneau, wou...
JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) – The Alaska Legislative Council approved a measure that requires lawmakers, employees and reporters to be screened for the coronavirus when entering the Capitol and to wear masks or face coverings in the building and other legislative offices. The council also voted on Thursday to keep the Capitol building closed to the public until at least January, when the next Legislature convenes. Legislative staff and reporters will still be allowed into the building, KTOO Public Media reported. The council’s chair, Sen. Gary Ste...