Sorted by date Results 751 - 775 of 10720
So, you want to see bears at the Anan Wildlife Observatory. But maybe you couldn't get one of the limited number of permits, or you live out of town and can't make the trip, or maybe you are a little more afraid of them than you care to admit. But now, thanks to the U.S. Forest Service, explore.org and 14 Wrangell high school students in the T3 Program, anyone worldwide can view Anan's fish-crazed black and brown bears. Last week, after months of preparation, planning and prototyping, the two...
T.J. Sgwaayaans Young, a Haida master carver from Hydaburg, arrived in Wrangell earlier this month to lead a team of Wrangell-based apprentices to carve a new Kadashan totem pole. When the work is finished, the Wrangell Cooperative Association plans to hold a pole raising ceremony on Shakes Island sometime next year, Wrangell's first totem raising in 38 years. The Kadashan pole - referring to the Tlingit chief of the same name - is the first of two the WCA team will carve this year. Next month,...
Annual moorage rates will not increase this year, after the assembly on July 23 passed a resolution reversing a 3% fee increase it approved in April. The higher rates had been scheduled to take effect this month. The vote to roll back the rate increase was unanimous. “Realizing that it’s such a poor commercial fishing season, realizing that the tourism industry has struggled a bit this year, we felt we could drop the rate increase this year and come back to it next year,” Borough Manager Mason Villarma said in an interview last week. The assem...
LEARN TO LINE DANCE 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Aug. 27 at the community center multi-purpose room, with Issabella Crowley. For ages 18 years old and up. Entry fee is by donation. NOLAN CENTER THEATER “Despicable Me 4,” rated PG, at 6 p.m. Friday, 6 p.m. Saturday, 4 p.m. Sunday Aug. 2-4. The animated adventure comedy runs 1 hour and 34 minutes; tickets are $7 for adults, $5 for children under age 12. Children under 12 must be accompanied by an adult. MUSKEG MEADOWS Compass Line Shop, 9-hole best-ball golf tournament, with special prizes,...
July 31, 1924 The most disastrous fire that Wrangell has seen in years occurred last Thursday night when the Alaska Sanitary Packing Co. cannery burned. The fire was discovered about 1:30 o’clock near a gasoline engine in the front end of the cannery. The fire department quickly responded to the alarm, but all efforts to check the flames in the main building proved futile. It was only by the most persistent efforts that the flames were kept from spreading to the office building, mess house and other buildings in the vicinity of the cannery. It...
They may be out of sight to the general public but they are never out of mind for the U.S. Forest Service. The agency maintains 35 mountaintop repeater towers within the Tongass National Forest to provide radio coverage for their field crews and first responders. A contractor is installing new repeater stations at five sites this summer in the Wrangell and Petersburg ranger districts, part of an ongoing effort to switch out older units with newer models. Of particular importance to Wrangell, a...
The assembly last week took the first step toward seeking voter approval to someday pay members for their work. The assembly on July 23 approved in first reading an ordinance that would put the question to voters on the Oct. 1 municipal election ballot; they set a public hearing on the ordinance for Aug. 27. If approved by voters, the ballot measure would not result in immediate compensation for assembly members and the mayor. Instead, it would only remove a provision from the borough charter prohibiting such payments. The assembly would need...
The borough assembly has started a lengthy process that will include a lot of public input, as it should, to possibly amend the municipal charter so that a future assembly, if it chooses, could change municipal code to pay mayors and assembly members for their work. Allowing the option of paying members a few hundred dollars a month is a good idea — not because so many other cities and boroughs in Alaska have been doing it for years, but because it takes a lot of time to be a good assembly member, more than should be expected of volunteers. S...
A $38.6 million federal grant will help lower the cost of energy-saving heat pumps for an estimated 6,100 Alaska households stretching from Ketchikan to Kodiak, including Wrangell. The money will provide rebates of between $4,000 and $8,500 per household for the purchase and installation of a heat pump. The funding is in addition to federal tax credits of up to $2,000 per household. The federal grant for coastal Alaska, announced July 22, will go the Southeast Conference, a community and economic development nonprofit for the region, and...
First it was radio, then television. Then it was video games and TikTok. Many book lovers, bookstores and parents of reading-age children feared the demise of the printed story. Yet, with just a few days to go before the end of the Irene Ingle Public Library annual summer reading program for kids, the youngsters are far ahead of last year’s pace. The program ends Saturday, Aug. 3, with prizes for readers and a party on Aug. 10. Wrangell’s young readers entering kindergarten through ninth grade in August had gone through 2,603 books as of Jul...
The WMC Foundation and SEARHC are inviting women to enjoy some "fun and frolic" golf for a good cause. The annual Rally for Cancer Care will be held Saturday, Aug. 10, at the Muskeg Meadows. Registration starts at 9 a.m.; the event begins at 10 a.m. The day will feature a luncheon, beverages, prizes, a silent auction and a golf tournament with no scoring and no skills required. "It's not even golf," organizer Patty Gilbert, board member of the WMC Foundation said. "It's 'fun and frolic' on the...
Alaska firefighting departments will have to stop using fire-suppression foams containing contaminants known as “forever chemicals,” under a law that went into effect July 24. Legislators passed the new law nearly unanimously this spring. It went into effect without Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s signature, an option that governors can choose when they don’t want to veto a bill but also don’t want their name on it. The new law targets per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as PFAS. They have qualities making them resistant to fire, water and oil.... Full story
Monday, July 22 Welfare check. Agency assist: Harbor Department. Found property. Dog at large. Agency assist: U.S. Forest Service. Found property. Motor vehicle accident: Citation issued for negligent driving. Tuesday, July 23 Bird complaint. Wednesday, July 24 Agency assist: Wrangell IGA. Agency assist: Fire Department. Found property. Report of suspicion of driving under the influence. Thursday, July 25 Time-limit parking. Friday, July 26 Deer complaint. Motor vehicle accident. Citizen assist. Saturday, July 27 Bar check. Summons service....
LOST PHONES Lost iPhone XR and Samsung Android on Feb. 1. If found, please turn in to the police department. HELP WANTED Wrangell Chamber of Commerce is accepting applicants for executive director who plans, organizes, coordinates and directs chamber business as well as oversees the daily operation of the chamber. Posting open until filled. Full job description and applications are available by emailing Chamber President bburr@wrangellchamber.com. HELP WANTED Johnson’s Building Supply is accepting applications for the following position: C... Full story
Last week, Jim Kauffman, director of U.S. Capitol grounds and Arboretum at the Architect of the Capitol, selected one of seven Southeast Alaska finalists for the official 2024 Capitol Christmas Tree. The winner is a secret, for now. All seven finalists are located within the Wrangell Ranger District of the Tongass National Forest. This means that when the tree is harvested in October - an operation that requires multiple cranes and an 82-foot-long trailer - it will be paraded through Wrangell's...
Alaska’s population is set to decline by 14,000 residents by 2050, according to a new forecast from the Alaska Department of Labor, with Wrangell showing the highest rate of annual population loss over the period, dropping on average by 1.5% annually. The community’s population is forecast to drop to under 1,400 people by 2050, continuing its steady decline from 2,369 residents in the 2010 U.S. Census and 2,039 in last summer’s state estimate. The ongoing loss of working-age residents is a leading cause of the statewide population decli... Full story
When Dan Trail took his dogs to play fetch on June 20 at Petroglyph Beach, the last thing he expected was to find himself involved in a statewide baby seal rescue mission. But when he reached for his tennis ball and noticed it lying on the tail of a 1-week-old lost seal pup, he sprang into action. The seal - now called Rocky by her rescue team - was extremely dehydrated when Trail found her. Wedged in between two rocks, high above the receding tide, she was sucking in air on a warm June day....
In closely watched oral arguments on July 18, a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals indicated that it is unlikely to grant an environmental group’s petition for an order that could halt — at least temporarily — a valuable Southeast Alaska king salmon fishery. In May 2023, a judge in the U.S. District Court covering western Washington issued an order that said federal officials were allowing Alaska fishermen to harvest king salmon at rates that harmed an endangered population of killer whales in Puget Sound. The whale... Full story
July 24, 1924 A new business building 50 by 60 feet is to be erected on Front Street, and work on the structure will begin at once, according to Harry Saito. The new building will occupy the entire space between Engstrom’s store and the property owned by Walter Waters. Saito said his first step will be a concrete foundation, after which the erection of the building will be pushed as rapidly as possible. The lower story will be used for a restaurant and possibly some other line of business. The upper story will be used as a rooming house to t...
WRANGELL SCHOOL BOARD special school board meeting 6:30 p.m. Thursday, July 25, at Evergreen Elementary School Room 101. Agenda: superintendent’s evaluation. LEARN TO LINE DANCE 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays from July 30 to Aug. 27 at the community center multi-purpose room with Isabella Crowley. For ages 18 years old and up. Entry fee is by donation. BEARFEST Wednesday through Sunday, July 24-28. An event dedicated to bears and their surroundings. Enjoy symposiums, cultural events, art and photo workshops, fine dining, a marathon and much m... Full story
Heat pumps, which can be a cost- and energy-efficient upgrade from traditional heating systems, are growing in popularity in Southeast Alaska - especially in Wrangell. Charlie Hazel, one of two licensed contractors who installs the units in Wrangell, said when he moved to town in 2013, 60% of homes used electric boilers for heat. In the past 11 years, Hazel has installed around 120 electric heat pumps. For context, Wrangell has just over 1,000 residential properties. While most models cannot...
It was a scary week in America. A troubling and unsettling eight days. It started with an assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump on July 13. Then, eight days later, President Joe Biden gave in to pressure and announced he would not seek reelection. In between, Americans heard, read and scrolled through multitudes of rumors, facts, opinions, political commentary, conspiracy theories and a lot of irresponsible garbage from all sides. Surviving all the turmoil, maybe government leaders will come out smarter and more caring. Maybe...
Sam Pausman, the Sentinel's newest reporter, switched coastlines to start work in Wrangell on July 15. He moved from Maine to Alaska. "I wanted to see something totally new, nothing close to anywhere I had ever been before," Pausman explained. The closest he had ever been to Alaska was Chicago. A May graduate from Bowdoin College, in Brunswick, Maine, he majored in history, with a focus on journalism. He worked on the college newspaper, including a stint as editor-in-chief his senior year,...