Sorted by date Results 3378 - 3402 of 7954
ANCHORAGE (AP) - The Alaska Federation of Natives has postponed its annual convention because of a rise in COVID-19 cases in the state, the organization said. The convention has traditionally been the largest gathering of Alaska Natives in the state. It had been scheduled for Oct. 21-23 but is now delayed until mid-December in Anchorage, the organization said in a statement Aug. 24. The federation’s board of directors cited a rise in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations statewide and the increasing pressure placed on Alaska’s limited health car...
SITKA (AP) - The Sitka city assembly has authorized a 20-year lease of land to a Native corporation for a “cultural and recreation attraction” for visitors, particularly cruise ship visitors docking at the nearby Sitka Sound Cruise Terminal. The assembly, voting 5-2, approved leasing 17 acres to Shee Atiká, which plans to work with another company, Adventure Sitka, to develop the land with attractions such as zip lines, nature trails, a salmon bake and a canoe launch. The land is between the ferry terminal and the cruise terminal. Chris McGr...
ANCHORAGE (AP) - Pilots reported low clouds the morning a sightseeing plane crashed near Ketchikan, killing all six people on board, according to a federal report released Aug. 25. The National Transportation Safety Board released the preliminary report into the Aug. 5 crash of a plane that was carrying five tourists off a cruise ship and the pilot. The report did not include details such as a probable cause, which are typically released much later. The floatplane hit heavily wooded, mountainous terrain as the plane was returning to the...
The borough assembly decided not to reinstate a local mask mandate at their Tuesday meeting. Rather, they asked borough staff to pursue a public education campaign strongly recommending that people wear face masks and take other safety precautions during the current surge in COVID-19 cases. The assembly vote was 6-1. The meeting was held via Zoom, a reversal from the assembly’s short-lived return to in-person meetings. City Hall has been closed since last week due to staff exposure to COVID. Dorianne Sprehe, with the Wrangell Emergency O...
The state ferry system hopes to resume service next summer to Prince Rupert, British Columbia, after a two-year absence due to a customs-clearance issue between the U.S. and Canada. “We are now working at very high levels to try to get back there,” said John Falvey, general manager of the Alaska Marine Highway System. “Rupert is an important port for us.” It’s also a historic port. The Alaska Marine Highway System went into business in 1963, sailing between Prince Rupert and Southeast, before extending its run to Seattle in 1967 and maintaini...
The Alaska Marine Highway System has put out its summer 2022 draft schedule for public comment, with two potentially big changes from this year: The possible return to service of the Columbia, the largest ship in the fleet, and the possible return to Prince Rupert, British Columbia, after a two-year absence from the port. If the Columbia returns, it would give the state ferry system two sailings a week out of Bellingham, Washington, to Southeast Alaska ports. With the Columbia, Wrangell could get two northbound and two southbound ferry calls a...
After starting July at 56%, then moving to 58% on Aug. 1, the rate of eligible Alaskans getting at least their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine has now climbed to 60%. Though the rate is improving, Alaska is still far behind the national average of 71%, as reported Tuesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Alaska is two-thirds of the way down from the top in rankings of the 50 states. Just like the state’s rising tally, Wrangell’s rate of eligible residents with at least their first shot has climbed from 61% to 64% in the pas...
A COVID-19 outbreak that shut down a Washington state warehouse that helps supply Wrangell IGA and other Southeast grocery stores disrupted shipments this month, but the operation has reopened and shelves and coolers are moving back toward normal. “We didn’t get any dry groceries for the past two weeks, we only got our dairy and our meat,” Caroline Bangs, with Wrangell IGA, said Monday. “But this week we just got our freight in and just got eight pallets of dry (goods).” With the distribution center reopened and filling orders, Bangs expects d...
Wrangell has a long history and a modern museum that displays the rich heritage of the community and its people. But the volunteer group that supports the museum is short of new members. The Friends of the Museum raises money to support projects at the keeper of the town’s history. “That is our sole purpose,” said Michael Bania, who has served as president the past few years. That includes not only supporting activities at the museum, but also acquisitions for the collection, with fundraising, advocacy and volunteering some time to help with...
The Alaska Marine Highway System is not alone in trying to manage with a crew shortage, nor is it a new problem. But the fear of COVID-19 is making it worse. “We’ve had a slow progression of loss of crew over the years,” John Falvey, the system’s general manager, said in an interview last week. “COVID has not helped us.” Fear of catching the coronavirus is an issue for recruiting new stewards who work in the galley and dining area, clean the cabins and public areas, he said. “There tends to be a concern now (of COVID) when you look at custo...
Candidacy filings for Wrangell’s Oct. 5 municipal election will close at 4 p.m. Tuesday. Residents who want their name on the ballot for a seat on the borough assembly, school board or port commission must file their paperwork at City Hall by the deadline. As of Monday, with a week still to go before the deadline, nine candidates had filed for the positions. Jim DeBord was the only candidate as of Monday for the two three-year seats on the borough assembly. Don McConachie Sr. filed for the one-year unexpired term open on the assembly. Angela A...
The SouthEast Alaska Regional Health Consortium is seeking volunteers to play victims, friends and family members, even news reporters in a mass casualty exercise Oct. 5. The drill is planned for 3:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Wrangell Medical Center, providing an opportunity for hospital staff “to test their emergency plans and procedures,” SEARHC said in its promotional flyer for the event. “Some (not all) volunteers will receive extensive make-up (moulage) to enhance realism,” the flyer said. “Volunteers should understand that this exercise...
JUNEAU (AP) — The state has reported the deaths of five residents of the Pioneer Home in Ketchikan who had tested positive for COVID-19. “In the last week, the Ketchikan Pioneer Home has had five resident deaths and there has been a total of 12 residents and five staff test positive for COVID-19 this month,” Clinton Bennett, a state Department of Health and Human Services spokesman wrote in an email to the Ketchikan Daily News on Aug. 18. He did not provide a more precise timeline. The state Pioneer Homes “do not determine the cause of death n...
SITKA (AP) - Sitka could see nearly a half-million cruise ship visitors next year - almost double its previous record - after a new docking agreement was announced with Royal Caribbean Cruise. The deal between the cruise line and Sitka Sound Cruise Terminal came as one of the world's largest cruise ships arrived, the Daily Sitka Sentinel reported. "It ensures they have a place to bring their ships and additional ships to Sitka for the future," said Chris McGraw, manager of Sitka Sound Cruise...
The Haines Borough had its largest population decline in history and the largest of any Alaska borough or census area over the past decade, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Haines’ population fell by 17.1% — from 2,508 in 2010 to 2,080 in 2020 — with much of the decline outside of the townsite that used to be considered the city of Haines. But the census numbers don’t align with the state Labor Department 2020 borough population estimate of 2,520, which was calculated using 2010 census data and Permanent Fund dividend application numbers...
HONOLULU (AP) - Hawaii’s governor on Monday asked that visitors and residents reduce travel to the islands to essential business only for the next two months while the state struggles to control COVID-19 as the highly contagious Delta variant spreads in the community. Gov. David Ige wants to curtail travel to Hawaii through the end of October. “It is a risky time to be traveling right now,” he said. He said restaurant capacity has been restricted and there is limited access to rental cars. Ige stopped short of a mandate, saying it’s a differe...
ANCHORAGE (AP) - More than 3,000 fake COVID-19 vaccination cards were confiscated at cargo facilities at the Anchorage airport after they had arrived from China, officials said Aug. 19. Officers from U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized the cards as they arrived in small packages, said Jaime Ruiz, an agency spokesperson. There were between 135 and 150 packages found in Anchorage, all sent by the same person in China, Ruiz said. The packages contained small amounts of the fake cards, about...
ANCHORAGE (AP) - Three-time Super Bowl champion Mark Schlereth returned home to Alaska last week to encourage people to get the COVID-19 vaccine. The Service High School alumnus made a halftime appearance last Friday night during his alma mater’s game at West High School. “I just want to encourage everybody to do your part, to talk to your doctor and if it’s the right decision for you, please get vaccinated, please take care of one another,” Schlereth said Aug. 20. He has been advocating on social media for COVID-19 vaccines, and he said the NF...
The discoveries of hundreds of unmarked graves at former residential schools for Indigenous children in Canada have prompted renewed calls for a reckoning over the traumatic legacy of similar schools in the United States - and in particular by the churches that operated many of them. U.S. Catholic and Protestant denominations operated more than 150 boarding schools between the 19th and 20th centuries. Native American and Alaska Native children were regularly severed from their tribal families,...
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. government has extended its ban on nonessential travel along the borders with Canada and Mexico to slow the spread of COVID-19 despite increasing pressure to lift the restriction and despite the fact that Canada opened its border to fully vaccinated Americans two weeks ago. U.S. border communities that are dependent on shoppers from Mexico and Canada and their political representatives have urged the Biden administration to lift the ban, complaining that it is crippling business. But the Department of Homeland S...
JUNEAU (AP) - Former state Rep. Les Gara on Aug. 20 announced plans to run for governor in next year’s election. The Anchorage Democrat joins Gov. Mike Dunleavy, a Republican, and former Gov. Bill Walker, an independent, who have previously announced their intentions to run. Libertarian William “Billy” Toien, who unsuccessfully ran in 2018, is the only official candidate listed so far with the state Division of Elections. In a statement, Gara cited as concerns state public works construction needs, Alaska’s education and university systems...
JUNEAU (AP) - The state’s decision to not seek further legal review of a split court ruling that struck down several campaign contribution caps in Alaska has been criticized by a state lawmaker who said the state should have pressed forward with a legal fight. The case was heard by a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. Gov. Mike Dunleavy has an obligation to defend the laws of the state, said Sen. Bill Wielechowski, of Anchorage. “He doesn’t get to pick and choose which laws he wants to defend and not defend,” Wielech...
BELFAST, Maine (AP) - A large, land-based salmon farming operation in Maine has obtained a key approval it needed to move forward, but opposition to the project remains. Nordic Aquafarms wants to build a $500 million, 55-acre salmon farm in Belfast, in the middle of the state’s Atlantic coastline. The plant would be capable of producing about 70 million pounds of Atlantic salmon a year. The company announced last week that is has received a U.S. Army Corp of Engineers permit, which is the final permit it needs. However, local c...
OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) - A universal mask mandate for indoor public spaces regardless of vaccination status went into effect in Washington state on Monday. Gov. Jay Inslee announced the expanded mask mandate last week. He also expanded the state’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate to all public school employees, in addition to employees at state colleges, and most child care and early learning providers. The mandates follow weeks of escalating COVID-19 case rates and increasing hospitalizations caused primarily by the Delta variant of the coronavirus. I...
WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. (AP) - All Navajo Nation executive branch employees will need to be fully vaccinated against the virus that causes COVID-19 by the end of September or be required to submit to regular testing, according to an executive order announced by President Jonathan Nez on Sunday. The new rules apply to full, part-time and temporary employees, including those working for tribal enterprises like utilities, shopping centers and casinos. Any worker who does not show proof of vaccination by Sept. 29 must be tested every two weeks or face...
