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Visitors will soon be able to request the last of the daily permits for the Anan Wildlife Observatory this summer. There are four permits per day for the remainder of the summer meant to accommodate last-minute planning, and these permits need to be requested in person at the Wrangell Ranger District up to one week in advance. Requests must be made by filling out a form at the front desk, and individuals listed on the form must be physically present at the time of request (with the exception of...
After the retirement of Bob Dalrymple earlier this year, Wrangell has been searching for a new ranger for their Forest Service district. As of last Sunday, that search has come to an end. Clint Kolarich, the new ranger, comes to Wrangell with an extensive background with the Forest Service. "I was in the YCC [Youth Conservation Corps] when I was a junior in high school, and from there I went into seasonal firefighting," he said. "That was back in 1986. So I was off and on in seasonal...
Nicholas Howell has a bit of a reputation as the guy around town who runs a lot. Last December he ran 100 miles in a single day to celebrate the new year. He said that he also competed in an Ironman triathlon down in California last year. Howell enjoys "ultra events" because it gives him the opportunity to test himself, and better his training and discipline, he said. Now, he is giving other Wrangell residents the opportunity to see what it is all about, by organizing the Tongass ToughMan...
Last Thursday, June 20, members of the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration, the Forest Service, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and local volunteers all converged on the beach of east Wrangell, near Channel Island, to dissect a dead gray whale that had washed ashore. Kate Savage, once a veterinarian in Wrangell but now working with NOAA, said that an Unusual Mortality Event is occurring all along the Pacific Coast, from Alaska to Mexico. There...
Due to the dry conditions and water shortage concerns, there is a very high fire hazard and public safety (and property) concern. The City & Borough of Wrangell, along with the Wrangell Police Department and the Wrangell Fire Department has made the decision that there will not be a Fireworks Display this year. We understand that the Fireworks Display is a huge part of the 4th of July however, we are very concerned with the potential for fire during these dry conditions. Further, if there were...
Wrangell residents are likely to see a new face patrolling the streets, as the Wrangell Police Department has recently recruited a new officer. Paul Jay Huerta was sworn in on June 10. New to Alaska, Huerta spent a lot of his life and career in California. Wrangell, he said, is a terrific opportunity for him to slow down and enjoy the small town life. "I started getting the Alaska bug," he said. "Alaska is something that I've always wanted to do. Long story short, I pretty much woke up one day...
The carcass of a gray whale was reported floating between Wrangell and Channel Island, in the eastern passage. According to Kate Savage, with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, her organization heard about the whale early Saturday morning, June 15. Wrangell resident Sara Gadd shared several photographs of the animal on Facebook. Gadd's husband, Charles, took the photos. He said that he first found the whale floating in the water around 3:30 p.m. on Sunday, and saw it again...
Pats Lake was crowded last Saturday as people came out to enjoy the eighth annual Kids Fishing Day. The day is an event hosted by the Forest Service, to encourage interest in fishing and the great outdoors. Plenty of kids came out to fish and spend time around the lake with their families. The Forest Service also had lots of games set up for the kids to enjoy, and booths where they could learn how to make fishing lures or paint their own custom T-shirts. The Southeast Alaska Watershed Coalition...
The Wrangell Cooperative Association, along with Corvus Design and SALT, a consulting team, held a workshop at the Nolan Center last Thursday, June 13. The workshop was part of the Administration for Native Americans grant project, which has been led in Wrangell by Ruby McMurren and Talea Massin of the WCA. The project was designed to look at ways to prevent the out-migration of the native community in Wrangell. Through several meetings with community and tribal leaders, McMurren and Massin...
The Wrangell Elks Lodge hosted a Flag Day ceremony last Friday, June 14. Flag Day is a national holiday to commemorate the adoption of the Stars and Stripes as the country's national flag. According to military.com, commemoration of Flag Day dates back to the 1880s, when teacher BJ Cigrand organized a group of Wisconsin students to observe the flag's birthday. The practice grew and spread across the country until it was officially recognized as a holiday by President Woodrow Wilson in 1916. The...
The Wrangell School Board held a meeting last Monday evening, June 17, to review contracts for the next school year. The district holds various contracts with other entities to assist in the day-to-day management of the district, from transporting students to assisting in educating them. One contract is between the school district and the Etolin Bus Company. The company had a three-year contract to pick up and deliver Wrangell students to school and then back home at the end of the day, from...
The Fourth of July is a fun holiday across the country. With fireworks, parades, barbecues, it is hard not to get into the patriotic spirit of the event. Wrangell is known far and wide for going above and beyond in their Fourth of July celebrations. Instead of a single day, a whole week of fun events draw the community and many visitors together. Alicia Holder, with the Wrangell Chamber of Commerce, said that there are plenty of fun events that the public can look forward to this year. One of...
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game have announced sport fishing regulations for king salmon in the areas near Petersburg, Wrangell, and Kake that are opening to the harvest of king salmon after being closed for Southeast Alaska wild king salmon conservation. In the waters adjacent to the Stikine River (District 8 and a portion of Eastern Passage near Wrangell; see attached Map No. 1): July 15 - December 31: Alaska resident: The bag and possession limit is two king salmon, 28 inches or...
PETERSBURG – An ordinance allowing the use of fireworks within service area one three days out of the year was passed by the borough assembly in its third reading on Monday. Ordinance #2019-04 allows residents to light fireworks on their property on July 3 and 4 and Dec. 31 from 12 P.M. to 1 A.M. Those who light fireworks within service area one outside of the three dates stated in the ordinance can face up to a $500 fine. The ordinance will also allow special permits for the use of consumer fir...
The Wrangell Planning and Zoning Commission held a special meeting last week, June 4, to review the borough’s hazard mitigation plan. The plan, according to Economic Development Coordinator Carol Rushmore, is meant for city and other governing entities to better understand what kind of natural disasters it may be vulnerable to, the potential costs of those disasters, and ways that the risks can be lessened. Wrangell’s plan was first created in 2010, and was in need of an update. She also sai...
The Wrangell Borough Assembly gave a second reading of the proposed FY 2020 budget during their meeting on Tuesday, June 11. This year's budget season has been a challenge for local governments across the state, thanks in part to an ongoing battle over the state budget in the Alaska legislature. City governments and school boards are all looking at financial challenges in the near future, and Wrangell is no exception. The proposed budget for the borough has revenues set at about $16.62 million,...
At approximately 4:20 p.m. last Friday, June 7, the power went out in the towns of Wrangell and Petersburg. Both islands completely lost power for about 40 minutes, before diesel generators were fired up around 5 p.m. The outage occurred due to a problem with a breaker at Tyee Lake, according to Rod Rhoades with Wrangell Municipal Light and Power. According to Rhoades, around 4:20 p.m. Breaker No. 10 at Tyee Lake opened up, shutting off power to the two towns. Tyee Lake provides hydroelectric po...
In last week’s story on the borough assembly agreeing to a $1.3 million contribution to the Wrangell School District, it was reported that an amendment proposed by Assembly Member Patty Gilbert was dropped after discussion. Instead, the amendment was voted on and rejected....
Everybody, especially families with children, are invited to the eighth annual Kids' Fishing Day at Pats Lake this Saturday, June 15. Corree Delabrue, with the Forest Service, said that the fishing day was originally put together by Wrangell's scouting troops, but that the Forest Service had taken over in recent years. This year, the Wrangell Rod and Gun Club, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, and the Southeast Alaska Watershed Coalition are all involved. The event is designed to encourage...
The Wrangell Elks Lodge will be hosting a Flag Day ceremony tomorrow, June 14, beginning at 5:30 p.m. Flag Day is a national holiday, celebrated annually on June 14. The holiday was established in 1916, by President Woodrow Wilson, in honor of the flag of the United States, and also to give recognition to other historical events occurring near the same time. According to a 2018 article on history.com, Congress first established the Continental Army in June of 1775, during the Revolutionary War....
With old-time music playing in the background, and friends and family all talking and laughing together, Pastor Kem Haggard of Harbor Light Assembly of God welcomed everybody to the Diamond Club Celebration. The party, hosted at the Nolan Center, brought together eight Wrangell couples who were the guests of honor for the evening. A married couple's sixtieth anniversary is also known as the "diamond anniversary," as the couples are traditionally supposed to buy each other diamond jewelry....
There was a long and, at times, tense meeting over a single issue at city hall last Friday, May 31. The Wrangell Borough Assembly had called a special meeting to make a last-minute decision on how much money to give to the Wrangell School District this year. The assembly had planned to cover the item in their previous meeting on May 28, but opted to table the item to wait for extra financial information from the school. Over the course of two-and-a-half hours the assembly and several school...
A brown bear has been killed by Wildlife Troopers and Forest Service personnel after a run-in with a group of Alaska Crossings campers just north of Berg Bay, across the narrows on the mainland near Wrangell. According to information provided by Public Information Officer Ken Marsh, with the Alaska State Troopers, the encounter occurred on Sunday, May 26, around 3 a.m. A brown bear wandered into the Crossings camp and began rummaging through the group's food. The group had a bear fence,...
A groundbreaking ceremony was held next to the AICS clinic on Wood Street last Thursday, May 30, signifying the official beginning of construction of Wrangell's new hospital. Wrangell has been seeking a new hospital to replace the Wrangell Medical Center for some time now. The Southeast Alaska Health Consortium, SEARHC, acquired the medical center in 2018. Part of this acquisition deal was the construction of a new hospital. The new medical center, which will connect with the existing clinic,...
The Wrangell Cooperative Association held a "meeting of the association" last Wednesday, May 29. The cooperative association is Wrangell's governing body for tribal citizens. The meeting held a dual purpose: To introduce the public to the new tribal council, and to let the public know about several projects that are in the works. The WCA elected five new members to the tribal council in April. These are Christie Jamieson, Michelle Jenkins, Cori Robinson, Richard Oliver, and Lu Knapp. After introducing the council, and a prayer by Virginia...
