Like clockwork, the ominous signs show up every May: “Danger Nesting Eagles.” They’re placed near Unalaska’s clinic and post offices, and they feature a silhouette of a bird extending its talons toward a terrified human being.
The city’s Department of Public Safety put them up last Wednesday, after getting the first report of a bald eagle attack this year. According to Deputy Chief Mike Holman, the incident took place outside the Iliuliuk Family and Health Services clinic. Holman says that while bald eagles have wounded people in the past, this attack wasn’t anything serious – just a swooping.
The Bering Sea snow crab stock is officially rebuilt.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association announced the stock’s recovery as part of its annual report to Congress on the status of America’s fisheries.
Scientists first determined that snow crab was overfished in 1999, and slashed the harvest levels in response. A little over a decade later, the stock is now above its target population level. Commercial fishing quotas have also gone up as a result. This quota was brought up to almost 90 million pounds this season, nearly double what it was last year. However, fishermen have struggled to take this amount because of persistent ice cover in the Bering Sea this winter.
All infrastructure projects in the Aleutian region survived the governor’s veto pen.
Gov. Sean Parnell signed the $12 billion capital and operating budgets into law today, trimming them only slightly in the process. He reduced the budget by $66 million, with most of those cuts being made on the operating side.
The capital budget allocates $20 million to Unalaska projects. The state has set aside $9 million in federal appropriations for the runway safety project, and it has dedicated over $4 million in state funds for the building of a new wastewater treatment plant. Money for a chemical storage building and work on the Robert Storrs International Small Boat Harbor are also included in the budget.
Winning design for the Living Aleutian Home Competition entitled "Finnesko." Image courtesy of Nacho Santiago.
The Aleutian Islands are soon to be home to some of the world’s most cutting-edge architecture. Last week, the International Living Future Institute announced the winners of a contest that challenged architects to design an affordable, net-zero energy home suitable for the region’s tough climate. Now, the Aleutian Housing Authority is moving forward with plans to turn those designs into reality.
It’s already been a long snow crab season, but it’s about to be longer. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced Monday that the season will be extended by two weeks in some areas, moving the overall end date to mid-June.
Heavy ice cover in the Bering Sea periodically forced fishermen off the grounds this winter and almost a quarter of the allowable harvest remains uncaught. The unprecedented move by Fish and Game should give crabbers time to bring in the remaining 20 million pounds.
If you use Facebook, you might have noticed your friends giving shout-outs to the teachers who have made a difference in their lives. That’s because it’s Teacher Appreciation Week.
KUCB’s Alexandra Gutierrez joined a sixth-grade class at the Unalaska City School to get the scoop on what makes a good educator, what challenges they face, and how to keep more teachers in the system.
Petty Officer 3rd Class David Call, a health service technician with Kodiak-based Rockmore King Clinic, assists an Alaska Juris crewman on an Air Station Kodiak HC-130 Hercules airplane in Cold Bay. Courtesy of Petty Officer 3rd Class Jonathan Lally
Three crewmembers are reported as being in good condition after exposure to an ammonia leak aboard the F/V Alaska Juris. The crewmen were airlifted from the vessel by helicopter and medevaced to Anchorage on a Coast Guard C-130 aircraft Thursday night.
Details are still spotty about how the leak started.
“I don’t know anything about the ammonia leak," says Petty Officer Grant Devuyst. "I’d say the company that owns the vessel would be the best route for getting that.”
St. Paul’s fish processing plant will be open for business this summer after all.
The Environmental Protection Agency had ordered it be shut down for half the year as part of a settlement with Trident Seafoods over Clean Water Act violations. But that order has now been scrapped in response to complaints from St. Paul’s tribal government and the regional Native corporation and community development group. The Trident plant generates a substantial amount of income for St. Paul, and they argued that a closure would dramatically affect the island’s economy. According to settlement documents obtained by reporter Wesley Loy, Trident will be required to monitor its seafood waste and make sure that each particle is no greater than a “millimeter in size in any dimension.”
The Coast Guard is reporting an ammonia leak on the fishing vessel Alaska Juris. Petty Officer Grant Devuyst says initial reports are that two to five crewmembers are suffering from ammonia exposure, although the extent of their injuries isn't clear at this time.
The Coast Guard has deployed two helicopters and a C-130 aircraft to the vessel, which is currently 80 miles north of Cold Bay. Devuyst says the first helicopter is expected to arrive around 5pm Thursday. He adds there’s still not a lot of information.
