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Wrangell's high school basketball season will open this weekend with the boys team playing host to the Petersburg Vikings at 6 p.m. Friday and again at 10 a.m. Saturday. Wrangell's homecoming court will be introduced at halftime Saturday, said High School Activities Director Trisa Rooney. Safety precautions will be in place for those attending the game. Rooney said only two people per player's household will be allowed into the gym. Face masks are also part of the school district's COVID-19...
JUNEAU (AP) - Alaska held the enviable position of having the highest rate of coronavirus vaccinations per capita in the nation as of this week, the state said. As of Monday, more than 80,000 Alaskans had received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, and nearly 18,000 had received both doses, according to a report in the Anchorage Daily News. That does not include shots administered through the departments of Defense or Veterans Affairs but does include vaccinations handled through Indian Health Service partners. That’s a gain in four d...
The city announced a new case of COVID-19 in Wrangell this morning, reportedly not related to any travel. This latest case, the 29th total for the community, was reported as a local resident infected with the virus. According to the press release, the resident had not traveled recently. The person has been notified and is in isolation, the city reported. This is the only currently active case of COVID-19 in Wrangell. The previous 28 are all reported as recovered....
Wrangell businesses and nonprofits received more than $8 million in federal and state CARES Act funds last year. "It absolutely made a difference, but it still wasn't enough," said Carol Rushmore, Wrangell's economic development director. "It's not making them whole, by any means," Rushmore said Jan. 14. "There are some businesses really hurting." For many businesses that rely on tourism, there is hope that visitor traffic will pick up this year. "We will see visitors coming to help," but short...
Run for office is the answer, not a recall To the editor: The Jan. 14 Sentinel had an article stating that a group of people in Wrangell want to recall Mayor Steve Prysunka because of the mask mandate. The mask mandate was approved by the borough assembly and the mayor, so Prysunka was not solely responsible for the decision. Perhaps the non-mask group would like to recall the borough assembly and the mayor. In that case, I would expect to see members of the recall group run for assembly and may...
It's no secret that the state of Alaska is short of enough revenues to provide the services its communities need. And until the legislature, the governor and members of the public make hard decisions about taxes and the size of the Permanent Fund dividend, there will not be much state money available to flow to cities and boroughs for construction and repair projects. However, there is always a chance of political compromise that could create opportunities for dealing with backlogged...
Acknowledging Alaska's shortage of money, the Wrangell Borough Assembly has put together a list of priority projects for state funding "should the fiscal climate change." Until then, "(the city) understands there is little to no availability of funding for local capital needs," said the backup material for the assembly workshop Jan. 12 to compile state and federal legislative priorities for 2021-2022. In putting together the list - just in case money becomes available -the assembly considered...
The Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium is encouraging the public to register for their COVID-19 vaccination shot, as the latest allotment of doses has arrived and more will be on the way. SEARHC is providing vaccines first to people at least 65 years old and to frontline essential workers, according to a Jan. 19 press release. However, anyone can register regardless of where they fit in the availability sequence for their community, and they will be notified when their turn comes up. Mo...
The event is a month later than most years and COVID-19 safety rules will make it different too, but the goal is the same: Wrangell youth trying to score in the annual Elks Hoop Shoot on Saturday. The competition is set to start at the community center gym at 10 a.m. for 9-year-old boys and girls, 11:30 a.m. for 10 and 11-year-olds, and 1 p.m. for 12 and 13-year-olds. Event organizers are asking kids to arrive 15 minutes early to register. Every participant will be given his or her own...
The Wrangell Lady Wolves are preparing for a truly unique basketball season this year. Not only has COVID-19 required the high school to create mitigation plans to keep players safe, but the team has had to get creative to find enough players to even form a team. However, after decisions by the state school sports association and the school board to ease the eligibility rules, the season will move forward for the girls' team. Christy Good is head coach for the Lady Wolves this year, her first...
The single biggest hit to fishermen from the COVID-19 virus is lower dock prices, according to Alaska and West Coast harvesters, and 98% said their businesses have been badly bashed by the pandemic. That's based on survey results compiled by Ocean Strategies, a public relations firm that focuses on fisheries that helped profile the Pacific region for a larger federal study. Nearly 400 fishermen responded to the short, confidential survey launched last November, said senior consultant Hannah...
SEATTLE (AP) — More than two dozen Native American and Alaska Native tribes and cultural groups from the Northwest, along with the states of Washington and Oregon, are suing the federal government to stop the sale of the National Archives building in Seattle, a plan that would force the relocation of millions of invaluable historical records to California and Missouri. The Central Council of the Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska is among the plaintiffs in the lawsuit, as is the Tanana Chiefs Conference from Interior Alaska. The g...
A Wrangell resident arriving at the airport has tested positive for COVID-19 and is in isolation in town, the city announced today. The state reported the positive case in its statewide numbers on Monday, and Wrangell’s Unified Command was notified today. The city press release did not specify the date the individual was tested. The last COVID-19 positive case was reported by the city on Dec. 17. This week’s case brings to 28 the total number of Wrangell-related COVID-19 positives since the start of the pandemic. Of these, 18 have been in Wra...
Cruise ship companies serving Southeast Alaska are taking reservations for the summer season after losing all of last year to the pandemic - but not all cruise lines will return this year. Windstar Cruises, which brought a 208-passenger ship to Wrangell about 10 times in 2019, had originally planned its first 2021 cruise out of Vancouver on May 20, an 11-day voyage scheduled to stop in Wrangell, Ketchikan, Juneau and Haines. The sailings would have continued throughout the summer with a larger...
The Wrangell Borough Assembly unanimously voted Tuesday evening to extend the borough's COVID-19 emergency declaration through March to ensure the community remains eligible for any financial assistance. The assembly also voted to extend its resolution allowing the suspension of in-person assembly meetings until it can make accommodations for social distancing. The assembly declaration retroactively extends through March an emergency ordinance that had expired Dec. 31, which was a continuation...
The Women in Safe Homes (WISH) domestic violence shelter in Ketchikan serves Wrangell families too, and its board seat designated for a Wrangell member will be up at the nonprofit organization's annual meeting in February. Kay Larson has served two terms representing Wrangell on the WISH board, and she is asking if anyone else in the community would want to serve in the seat. WISH has operated a 24-hour shelter for domestic violence victims and their families since 1980, said WISH Executive Dire...
To help gain support for his proposal to pay Alaskans $5,000 in Permanent Fund dividends this year, Gov. Mike Dunleavy cites numbers that the Alaska Permanent Fund gained $10 billion on its investments March 31 through Nov. 30, 2020. The state can afford the extra spending, he says. That's not entirely accurate. It's misleading. Before the fund gained $10 billion in eight months, it lost $7 billion in the first three months of the year. But the governor is not talking about those money-losing...
While the season's schedule is still tentative amid the challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Wrangell Wolves are preparing for a new season of basketball. This will be Coach Cody Angerman's fourth season leading the high school boys team. The upcoming season will be unique in a variety of ways, he said, but his goals for the team are the same as always. "I have this same kind of mentality coming into every season," he said. "I just want to make sure that we're the best team possible...
July July 2: With recent national attention on racial bias and police brutality, the community met via web conference June 29 for an evening town hall meeting to discuss policing practices in Wrangell. The meeting provided an opportunity for residents to ask questions of Chief Tom Radke and to share their opinions on the Wrangell Police Department. Those who spoke in the meeting, by and large, expressed support for the police and their current practices. July 9: The cities of Wrangell,...
ANCHORAGE (AP) - The usual transportation difficulties in rural Alaska have presented unique obstacles for the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines, officials said. Dozens of remote villages lack hospitals and road connections, while ultracold freezers required for storage of specific varieties of the vaccine are essentially nonexistent, Alaska Public Media reported. Tribal health care providers responded by mobilizing a massive effort delivering thousands of doses to remote areas. Providers airlifted vaccine to villages using a fleet of...
Between state budget cuts, a mainline vessel engine breakdown, a halt to port calls in Prince Rupert, B.C., and COVID-19 travel restrictions, the Alaska Marine Highway System has struggled the past year to provide service to Wrangell and the rest of Southeast. Under the governor's proposed budget for the state fiscal year that starts July 1, the ferry system would have even less money to provide service. "Woefully inadequate," Ketchikan Rep. Dan Ortiz, who also represents Wrangell, described...
While many are thankful 2020 has come to an end, it does not necessarily mean an end to 2020's problems. Wrangell, like many other communities around the world, has struggled through the COVID-19 pandemic and economic uncertainties. With the start of the new year, city officials, businesses and other community members are looking toward 2021 with cautious optimism. "I think it's going to be a very mixed bag, to be quite honest with you," said city Economic Development Director Carol Rushmore....
Walking around Wrangell the days before Christmas, it felt much the same as when I first arrived in town in May 1976. People said hello, starting as soon as I stepped out of the airport terminal. Drivers waved. And the Wrangell Sentinel office was on Front Street. I can't say I planned to return as owner of the Sentinel, but it just seemed right. It's not a matter of reliving my youth - I'm too old and sensible for that. My neck is too stiff to sit at a keyboard 12 hours a day. My knees don't...
The aluminum can recycling bins next to Wrangell IGA are under new management. Kim Wickman, with the Wrangell Cooperative Association's IGAP department, said the Wrangell Swim Club will handle the can recycling moving forward. The club is hoping to use the recycling for fundraising, she said, though no major goals have been outlined at this time. Aluminum can recycling has been used by a variety of Wrangell sports teams to fundraise, Wickman said. Before the swim club, the Amateur Athletic...
January Jan. 2: Along with the lights, trees and carolers, the Salvation Army's red Christmas kettles are a common sight during the holiday season. Lt. Jon Tollerud, Wrangell's new corps officer, said the red kettles brought in $10,469. Jan. 9: The Nolan Center celebrated the new year Dec. 31 with a murder mystery party. As this new year marks a new decade, a return to the '20s, the party had a 1920s theme to it. With jazz music, themed costumes and masks, partygoers had the chance to return to...
