Articles from the March 23, 2022 edition
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 34
Columbia's return to service in doubt for lack of crew
A state Department of Transportation official told legislators that the ferry system is “burning out our crew” with lots of overtime amid staff shortages, and that the problem jeopardizes tentative plans to bring back the Columbia to service in S...
High oil prices fatten state treasury, drive spending decisions
High oil prices driven by the war in Ukraine, tight global oil supplies and OPEC’s decision not to pump more crude are adding tens of millions of dollars per month to the Alaska state treasury. The rush of oil revenues is boosting the governor’s...
Businesses prep for the start of tourism season
The anticipated return of visitors means that Wrangell business owners are readying themselves for customers to reserve lodging, stop into their shops and book tours on the waters of the Inside...
Hybrid-power Norwegian cruise ship will stop in Wrangell; its sister ship next year
The Roald Amundsen, a first-of-its-kind hybrid cruise ship powered by battery energy and fossil fuel, is scheduled for its first Wrangell stop on May 23 - on its first voyage to Southeast. Norwegian c...
The Way We Were
March 23, 1922 With the Inter-School Meet at Juneau only five weeks away, the need for concerted action on part of the people in Wrangell has become more evident. Everyone is enthusiastic about the meet, as Wrangell wants to be put on the map...
Congressman Don Young dies at 88; will lie in state at U.S. Capitol
WASHINGTON (AP) - Alaska Rep. Don Young, the longest-serving Republican in U.S. House history, will lie in state in the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday, March 29, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced Monday....
Special election will fill congressional vacancy
The new election system approved by Alaska voters in 2020 will get an unexpected first test this summer with a special election to fill the seat left vacant by the death of Congressman Don Young, Alaska’s sole member in the U.S. House of...
High oil prices not a reason to boost profits
No, this column is not directed at oil producers. They are not the guilty party in this tale of cost escalation. Nor is this column about the many businesses around the world stressed by energy prices that have shot up faster and higher than...
Wrangell should show the state its numbers
Challenging the U.S. Census undercount for Wrangell would not change the numbers, but presenting the case to the state could be a profitable use of borough time. While the census count showed Wrangell dropped from 2,369 residents in 2010 to 2,127 in...
Children's services caseworker welcome addition to town
It's been too long, more than a decade, since a state Office of Children's Services caseworker has been assigned to Wrangell. Welcome back, we missed you. The borough and school district have been trying for years to get state officials to put back...
State ferry system would operate better as its own corporation
I was pleased to learn that the Legislature finally has a bill, Senate Bill 170, to transfer the Alaska Marine Highway System from the Department of Transportation to a separate state-owned corporation similar to the structure of the Alaska...
Office of Children's Services caseworker transfers to Wrangell
For the first time in more than a decade, Wrangell has a state child protection services caseworker. Jennifer Ridgeway was the Office of Children's Services worker in Petersburg from October 2021...
Few requests for at-home test kits; borough stops reporting new COVID cases
With 1,153 boxes of two tests each piled up at the fire hall, there were enough COVID-19 self-tests available as of last Friday for more than the entire population of Wrangell to check for the virus at home. The tests are still available for free,...
Student's senior project par for the course
If it wasn't for the carts at Muskeg Meadows, more golfers might be forced to walk between holes. One teen is making sure that's not the case when the course opens this year. High school senior Jimmy...
Switch in satellites leaves DISH customers without Alaska channels
Options for television in Wrangell narrowed in mid-January when some DISH Network customers lost access to the Alaska affiliates for ABC, NBC, CBS and FOX when the provider switched satellites. After...
Borough seeks to purchase new vault to hold urns
The borough is requesting quotes for a second columbarium —a vault to hold urns with remains of the deceased — that would be added at Sunset Gardens cemetery. Borough Clerk Kim Lane reported on the issue for the borough assembly’s Tuesday...
WCA announces election results
The Wrangell Cooperative Association announced the four winning candidates from its March 8 tribal council election. Results posted March 9 show Frank Churchill Jr., Heidi Armstrong, Edward Rilatos and Lavina “Lovey” Brock were elected to the...
Lady Wolves lose to Tikigaq in bid for state title
The Lady Wolves came off their Southeast regional championship with the confidence to compete all the way to the state title for the first time since 1985, eventually falling one game short. In three...
Renèe Roberts swims into college on partial athletic scholarship
For nearly 10 years, Renèe Roberts has dedicated her life to swimming, and all those miles swum are taking her places. Roberts, a standout member of the Wrangell High School swim team, signed with...
Wolfpack Wrestling ends season with kids showing what they learned
The Wrangell community gym was the site for tumbling, grappling and pinning last Saturday. Forty-two members of Wolfpack Wrestling gathered as their families watched from the stands to put their train...
Interior Department close to issuing report on boarding schools
By Felicia Fonseca The Associated Press The Interior Department is on the verge of releasing a report on its investigation into the federal government’s past oversight of Native American boarding schools. Interior Secretary Deb Haaland told journal...
Dividend, abortion rights may drive decision on constitutional convention
JUNEAU (AP) — Simmering public anger in Alaska over the Legislature’s failure to settle the state’s most radioactive issue — how big a check residents should receive from the state’s oil-wealth fund — is colliding with a once-a-decade opp...
Former Wrangell teacher Carroll Merritt dies at 86
Former Wrangell resident Carroll Merritt, 86, died July 21, 2021, in Fort Benton, Montana. He was born in 1935, the first child of Bonnie and Ves Merritt, of Sturgis, South Dakota. During elementary school the family lived a short time in Deadwood, S... Full story
Commercial fisherman Randy Maygard dies at 68
Former Wrangell resident Randy Charles Maygard, 68, died March 2. He was born Sept. 14, 1953, to Charles and Nancy Maygard, of Seattle. Randy grew up part of his life in Seattle, where he attended... Full story
Alaska Senate passes bill that would block businesses from requiring vaccinations
A bill that would ban discrimination on the basis of COVID-19 vaccination status passed the Alaska Senate on March 16 in a move to limit state service providers and private businesses from requiring the life-saving vaccine. The bill, sponsored by...