An improvised "Christmas Tree" in downtown Wrangell, made out of traffic cones and branches. The city's annual Christmas Tree lighting ceremony was postponed due to last week's stormy weather.
Wrangell's Christmas tree lighting ceremony has been postponed due to bad weather and ongoing efforts by the city's electrical department to keep power running, according to the Wrangell Chamber of Commerce.
In a Facebook post on Thursday, Dec. 3, the chamber announced that the annual tradition was being pushed back, potentially to Dec. 11. However, the post went on to say that Midnight Madness was still moving forward Friday evening Dec. 4. Many businesses were still open late for shopping and sales.
"As I am sure many of you have noticed, there is no Christmas tree up downtown," the Facebook post reads. "Due to the storm and power situation, the Christmas tree is NOT able to go up by this Friday, so the Tree Lighting Ceremony will be postponed."
Rod Rhoades, Wrangell Municipal Light & Power, director, confirmed that the tree lighting ceremony was delayed. Poor weather has kept his department from getting the tree in the first place, he said, and they have been very busy responding to power outages caused by the storm.
"We just have not been able to harvest the tree," he said. "The storm damage took all of our opportunities away."
Rhoades said, in an interview on Dec. 7, that they will try to get the tree for the city within the next few days now that the stormy weather has largely passed. However, he said this will depend on any priority work that pops up in the near future.
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