Articles from the October 3, 2019 edition


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  • SE Conference sets future priorities, plans to visit Wrangell in 2021

    Caleb Vierkant|Oct 3, 2019

    Southeast Conference, a regional organization consisting of 185 member organizations and people, was founded in 1958 to help promote the creation of the Alaska Marine Highway. On top of promoting the state ferry system, according to their website, Southeast Conference also advocates for economic development, local business, and healthy communities, among other things. The Southeast Conference held its annual meeting Sept. 18-20 in Sitka. For Assembly Member Mya DeLong, who attended the...

  • Preliminary election results

    Oct 3, 2019

    A total of 365 ballots were cast on Wrangell's election day, Oct.1, plus an additional 40 absentee ballots. There were several positions up for election on the borough assembly, school board and port commission. The public also had the opportunity to vote to make a minor amendment to Wrangell's charter, removing the Wrangell Medical Center Board as the hospital is no longer operated by the borough. The following is the preliminary election results (* indicates preliminary winner): Borough...

  • Changes made to Washington state sales tax exemptions for Alaskans

    Caleb Vierkant|Oct 3, 2019

    For many years, Alaskans have enjoyed a special sales tax exemption in the state of Washington. One Petersburg resident explained that when traveling in Washington, Alaska residents could show their driver's license and be exempt from sales tax on their purchases. According to the Washington state Department of Revenue, this exemption was open to nonresidents who were purchasing "tangible personal property, digital goods, and digital codes, for use outside this state [Washington]." The...

  • Moose numbers above five-year average

    Oct 3, 2019

    This year's moose harvest looks to be above the five- year average with the moose count at 64 just 17 days into the season. Between 2014 and 2018, the average moose count for this time of the season was 58. There was a dip in the moose harvest this time last year, with only 42 being taken. Fish and Game Area Biologist Frank Robbins said the warm weather last fall may have been a factor in the low number of moose being taken. In 2017 and 2016, the moose harvest was 64 about 17 days into the seaso...

  • The Way We Were In the Sentinel 100, 75, 50 and 25 years ago.

    Oct 3, 2019

    October 2, 1919 The launch, Sarabel, in charge of L.L. Wyatt left Point Warde Wednesday morning with Mr. and Mrs. Sam Wyatt and two children for Wrangell, but before the entrance to the back channel was reached they had the misfortune to strike a rock, throwing the boat on beam ends. Fortunately the Frank H. Madden was on her way to Anan Creek with a seine boat in tow and as a haze hung over the water could not see far, but the captain, hearing several shots in succession, rushed in their direction and found the Sarabil on rocks and sinking...

  • Correction

    Oct 3, 2019

    In last week’s edition, we reported that Wrangell’s two new generators were purchased from the city of Nome. According to Assembly Member Jim DeBord, the generators were given to the borough. Wrangell only paid for shipping and handling....

  • Deteriorating batteries at Tyee facility to be replaced

    Brian Varela|Oct 3, 2019

    The Southeast Alaska Power Agency Board approved $97,750 to replace the backup battery bank at the Tyee Lake hydro facility at a regular board meeting last Thursday. Early last month, Petersburg and Wrangell were providing their own power for about a week while the Tyee Lake Hydro facility was offline for annual maintenance. During the maintenance period, SEAPA conducted a battery capacity discharge test of the hydro project's nickel-cadmium batteries. Three hours into the test, one of the...

  • Rope Game

    Oct 3, 2019

  • Police report

    Oct 3, 2019

    September 23 Traffic stop: Verbal warning for failure to maintain lane and speed. September 24 Abandoned vehicle. Welfare check Traffic stop Traffic stop MVA: Deer Traffic stop Suspicious activity Traffic stop September 25 Welfare check Trespass Welfare check Welfare check September 26 Fire alarm Burglar alarm Civil matter Lost property Citizen assist Assisted trooper seizing illegal moose September 27 Traffic stop Random breath test Disturbance Search and rescue Suspicious person September 28 Gun shot Traffic stop Citizen assist Traffic stop...

  • PACE holds meet and greet in Wrangell last week

    Caleb Vierkant|Oct 3, 2019

    PACE, the statewide homeschool program, held a meet and greet at the Stikine Inn last Wednesday, Sept. 25. Jen Whicker, a contact teacher for PACE, said that the program has been around since 2001 and is one of 15 homeschool providers in the state. Currently, she said they serve about 310 students across Alaska. About 22 of those kids live in Wrangell. There are several reasons a family might consider homeschooling, she said. "Sometimes the schools have overcrowding, or kids feel bullied, or...

  • WCA hands out "Healthy Is Here" funding to local organizations

    Caleb Vierkant|Oct 3, 2019

    The Wrangell Cooperative Association held an award ceremony at Wrangell High School Monday evening, Sept. 30. Tribal Administrator Esther Ashton, along with several members of the WCA board, organized the ceremony to officially give several local organizations a check from the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium's "Healthy Is Here" grant. In total, $10,600 was given to 17 organizations. "The reason we're here today is that we received from SEARHC a Healthy Is Here grant," Ashton said....

  • Wrangell takes third and fifth in cross country regionals

    Caleb Vierkant|Oct 3, 2019

    The Wrangell Cross Country team traveled to Ketchikan last Saturday, Sept. 28, for the Region V Championships. The regional tournament saw a total of 17 teams participate. Wrangell ran in the Division III races, and made some strong showings. In the women's 5,000 meter run, Wrangell took third place, behind Haines in first and Petersburg in second. Of the seven Wrangell runners who participated, four achieved personal best times. First place for Wrangell, sixth overall, was Liana Carney at...

  • Wrangell Medical Center's Cathy Gross honored with quality and safety award

    Caleb Vierkant|Oct 3, 2019

    Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC) Wrangell Medical Center’s (WMC) Cathy Gross, Registered Health Information Technician and WMC Performance Improvement Manager, has been named the 2019 winner of the Front-line Staff Outstanding Performance Award by the Alaska State Hospital and Nursing Home Association (ASHNHA). Gross was honored during the September 26 ASHNHA Annual Conference for her years of dedication to patient safety improvements at WMC. She was notified of the award on the first-ever World Patient Safety Day, S...

  • Rummage sale raises almost $2k for swim team

    Oct 3, 2019

  • Alaska Fish Factor

    Laine Welch|Oct 3, 2019

    The nation’s farmers of the sea are hoping for a helping hand from Uncle Sam to train future generations of fishermen. It would mirror programs in place for nearly 160 years for U.S. farmers and ranchers. Federal backing of training programs for entry level farmers and ranchers can be traced back to the 1862 Morrill Land-Grants Act. Beginning in 2009, Congress authorized $75 million for the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (BFRDP) to “develop and offer education, training, outreach and mentoring programs to enhance the sus...

  • School superintendent shares lessons learned from statewide conference

    Caleb Vierkant|Oct 3, 2019

    While the role of superintendent is always busy, it has been especially so for Debbe Lancaster this past week. Lancaster, superintendent of the Wrangell Public School District, recently attended the Alaska Superintendents Association conference in Fairbanks, from Sept. 25 to 28. The Alaska Department of Education and Early Development also recently released a new website, "The Compass," that lets people more easily compare schools across the state. The ASA Conference was an opportunity for...