Articles written by Sentinel Staff
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Annual Birding Festival comes to town this week
The 2024 Stikine River Birding Festival will take flight Wednesday, April 24. Minor changes have been made to the schedule of events, which no longer includes a golf tournament at Muskeg Meadows on Saturday April 27. However, there are still plenty...
Registration opens May 1 for library's summer reading program
Registration opens May 1 for the library’s summer reading program for kids, with some big numbers from last year to match. More than 90 kids signed up for last year’s program sponsored by the Irene Ingle Public Library, reading almost 2,000 boo...
Little League opener Saturday; volunteers still needed
It’s almost time for more than 100 Little Leaguers to start their session, with the opening ceremony set for 10 a.m. Saturday, April 27, at Volunteer Park. And while the kids are getting ready, league officials still need volunteers for the t...
Chamber hands out annual volunteer, business, educator and citizen awards
The chamber of commerce at its annual awards dinner last weekend honored several members of the community for their service, including the fire department and emergency medical services crew, municipal electric line crew and borough employees for...
Alaskans invited to make ornaments for U.S. Capitol Christmas tree
The U.S. Forest Service is calling on Alaskans to create handmade ornaments to decorate the U.S. Capitol Christmas tree and the smaller companion trees that will represent Alaska in Washington, D.C. The trees will come from the Tongass National...
Chamber still working on plans for salmon derby
The chamber of commerce would like to put on the community’s 69th king salmon derby this year but hasn’t figured out the details, as it takes into consideration the state’s efforts to limit fishing in the area to help preserve and rebuild retur...
Wrangell receives $2.5 million federal grant for water treatment plant
The federal appropriations bill signed into law earlier this month includes a $2.5 million grant for Wrangell's new water treatment plant, which is under construction and scheduled for completion in June 2025. The latest federal grant, added to the...
Trident strikes deals to sell Ketchikan and Petersburg plants
Trident Seafoods has announced the sale of its Ketchikan processing facilities to Silver Bay Seafoods, and the sale of its Petersburg operation to E.C. Phillips & Son. Trident has not announced buyers for two other Alaska plants it has put on the...
Ferries needed elsewhere leave Wrangell with 2-week gap
Wrangell will go without state ferry service for the last week of March and first week of April as the ships are scheduled to meet other needs across coastal communities. There will be no northbound service to Wrangell between March 22 and April 10,...
Trident close to deals for selling Petersburg and Ketchikan plants
Trident Seafoods reported last week it was “entering the final stages of closing deals for three of its Alaska shoreside plants,” including its operations in Ketchikan and Petersburg. The Seattle-based company — the largest seafood harvesting and p...
Parks and Rec moves from one challenge to the next
Just as soon as its indoor Winter Workout Challenge ended, the Parks and Recreation Department moved outdoors - literally. The Outdoor Challenge, which started March 1, is similar to the indoor...
Fines take effect for illegal harbor trash
As of last week, anyone caught throwing trash into a harbor dumpster, other than household garbage by a boat owner, could face a $150 fine. The borough assembly on Feb. 27 adopted two ordinances: One which specifies in municipal code that the port...
WCA tribal citizens elect four council members
Wrangell Cooperative Association tribal citizens last week reelected two members and voted in two other members for the tribal council. Tribal citizens on Feb. 20 reelected Frank Churchill and Edward Rilatos to two-year terms on the council, said...
Clan advisory group will help tribe select totems for restoration
The Wrangell Cooperative Association has established an advisory council of clan leaders and representatives, in particular to help the tribe with a totem restoration and replacement project. Feedback from the advisory group will help WCA determine...
Proposed fine for illegal use of harbor dumpsters set for public hearing
The public will have a chance to voice their opinions Feb. 27 on a pair of proposed municipal ordinances that would limit the use of harbor dumpsters to boat owners only and for their household trash only — with a $150 fine for violations. The p...
State offers grants for locally grown food efforts
The state is offering an additional $2.2 million in small grants this year for individuals and groups around Alaska to increase the quantity and quality of locally grown food. The grants of up to $5,000 for individuals and $10,000 for organizations...
Hospice Hearts awards event set for Feb. 19 luncheon
Hospice of Wrangell will give out 16 “Hospice Hearts” next week to people who have helped the nonprofit organization in the past year. The hospice group started providing services in Wrangell in 2002, and each year honors volunteers for their ser...
First baby of year born to Jason and Michelle Clark
Zoey Grace Clark has the honor of being the first baby born this year to a Wrangell couple. She was born Jan. 7 at the Alaska Native Medical Center in Anchorage, weighing in at 7 pounds, 11 ounces...
Assembly adopts $300 fine for illegal tree cutting
The borough assembly on Jan. 9 unanimously adopted an ordinance to institute a $300 fine for illegally cutting down trees on borough land. No one from the public spoke on the ordinance at the public hearing held before the assembly vote. In addition...
Home holiday decorating contest judging Dec. 21
’Twas the week before Christmas and in the inky black night, Wrangell’s houses all shone with twinkly lights. But whose halls are the best-decked? It’s deadline time to register for the annual home decorating contest sponsored by the chamber of co...
Governor's budget includes no increase in school funding
Gov. Mike Dunleavy said education is among his top priorities in the coming fiscal year but did not include an increase to the state’s per-student funding formula, known as the base student allocation, in his proposed budget. The budget includes abou...
Borough suspends search for Derek Heller
The borough on Dec. 6 announced the suspension of the search for Derek Heller, 12, missing since a Nov. 20 landslide took out his family’s home at 11-Mile Zimovia Highway. “The decision to end the active search comes after 15 days of tireless and... Full story
Still seats open for holiday flights
Alaska Airlines looks at the calendar when it makes flight plans each year to accommodate Alaskans who want to fly out of state during the holiday break at schools. It’s not so much what day of the week Christmas and New Year’s fall on, but when scho...
Search suspended for landslide victim
The borough on Wednesday announced the suspension of the search for Derek Heller, 12, missing since a Nov. 20 landslide took out his family’s home at 11-Mile Zimovia Highway. Searchers had recovered the bodies of his parents, Timothy and Beth, and hi... Full story
Similar landslide hit closer to town in 1979
Though disasters like the 11-Mile landslide are infrequent, they’re not unprecedented in Wrangell. In October 1979, a hillside at 1.4-Mile Zimovia Highway gave way, covering more than 20 acres with mud, trees and debris. The town had almost nine i...