Sorted by date Results 101 - 111 of 111
The first snowfall of the year struck last week, blanketing Wrangell in white stuff. While the poor man’s answer to the eternal question of how much snow could be as simple as looking out the window, authorities in Wrangell have been without specific snowfall data for months. Contracted observers for the National Weather Service collect rain totals at the airport. However, the service relies on a network of volunteer observers to collect snow totals, according to Kimberley Vaughan, an observation program leader and forecaster with the S...
PETERSBURG – This summer’s warmer than average temperatures could carry over into the winter if current climate trends continue. Two main factors affect winter weather in Southeast Alaska—the Pacific Decadal Oscillation, or PDO, and the El Nino/La Nina Oscillations or ENSO. Each factor has two phases—positive and negative and both affect sea surface water temperatures. The positive PDO phase happens when increased storm activity in the north Pacific blows warmer water into the Gulf of Alaska and raises the average sea surface tempera...
Vandals burned two shelters in the Wrangell unit of the Tongass National Forest, Forest Service officials said. The damage to both the North Wrangell High Country Shelter and the Kunk Lake Shelter occurred some time between Sept. 2 and Sept 11, according to Wrangell unit Ranger Bob Dalrymple. Officials didn’t yet have a dollar value for the damage, and were waiting for clear weather to assess the damage, Dalrymple said. In either case, a fire started on the floor of the shelters burned through the wood floor, he added. “I don’t think the inten...
Alaska’s 2013 salmon season has yielded the largest catch ever, and the value of the fishery is also headed for the record books. The statewide catch on Sept. 6 was nearing 265 million fish – the old record was 222 million in 2005. A bumper run of pink salmon is behind the big harvest - the mindboggling catch was approaching 213 million fish. The previous record was 161 million pinks, also in 2005. Some boats are still out on the water, but the big pink catches have gone by, said Geron Bruce, Assistant Director for the state commercial fisherie...
A new mayor, renovations to the Shakes Island Tribal House and Marine Service Center, and the ongoing Wrangell Medical Center debate – all of these stories were newsmakers in 2012. Let’s take a look back at some of the biggest stories in Wrangell over the past year. JANUARY A late night blaze destroyed a trailer and sent a woman to Wrangell Medical Center with severe burns on Dec. 22. The fire, which began at 10:30 p.m. in a small pull-behind trailer near the top of the park, severely inj...
Winds in excess of 50 miles per hour toppled this tree about a quarter mile north of the Pats Lake Landing turnout on Sunday, Nov. 5. The National Weather Service predicted winds could gust as high as 85 miles per hour in Clarence Strait....
VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) – A magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck off the west coast of Canada, but there were no reports of major damage. Residents in parts of British Columbia were evacuated, but the province appeared to escape the biggest quake in Canada since 1949 largely unscathed. The U.S. Geological Survey said the powerful temblor hit the Queen Charlotte Islands just after 8 p.m. local time Saturday at a depth of about 3 miles (5 kilometers) and was centered 96 miles (155 kilometers) south of Masset, British Columbia. It was felt a...
For more than 20 years, Roland Larsen has been collecting weather data for Wrangell at the Wrangell Weather Office, both at its former U.S. Post Office building location, and its current residency at the airport. In the two decades Larsen has been at the helm of the office, he has reported temperature and precipitation for the Wrangell Sentinel, but recently, collecting the data related to precipitation in the borough has fallen to the city Public Works Department. The National Oceanographic...
The Chief Shakes Tribal House restoration project is more than halfway to completion, thanks in part to good weather and the hard work of the adzing team involved in the renovation. “If I had to put a number on the total project, I’d say we’re about 65 percent done,” said Project Manager Todd White. “We expected to salvage about 30 percent of the existing Tribal House, but that number turned out to be closer to 7 percent, creating additional work. But even with the additions, we’re still on-time for the 2013 re-dedication.” The Shakes Island tr...
As expected there will be less halibut available for fishermen to catch this year – an 18% drop to 33 million pounds, to be split among fisheries along the west coast, British Columbia and Alaska. That follows a 19% cut to the catch last year. The announcement was made at the International Pacific Halibut Commission’s annual meeting last week in Anchorage. Alaska always gets the lion’s share of the catch, which this year will be 25.5 million pounds. Driving the fishing decreases: Pacific halibut stocks continue a decade long decline, t...
Snow has been falling on and off in Wrangell since Friday, and as of Tuesday, the National Weather Service has forecasted snow showers to continue through the weekend. However, the snow has not caused any serious problems for Wrangell, according to reports from the Police Department and Public Works Department. Wrangell Police Chief Doug McCloskey said he is aware of two car accidents occurring in the past week due to weather, but neither were serious or caused any injuries. He said those two...
