Golden king crab season is officially open in the Aleutian Islands.

About five vessels had signed up to participate as of the season’s start last Friday. More than six million pounds of golden king crab is available to catch.

That amount is set in federal state regulations and divided up among the fleet and community development quota groups.

Unalaskans can vote in the primary today at City Hall. (Annie Ropeik/KUCB)

Update, 5 p.m. Tuesday:  Voters turnout has been slow but steady today. As of just before 5 p.m., about 170 people had voted in Unalaska.

Year-round residents and visiting workers alike came out to cast their ballots.

Many said the biggest issue on the ballot for them was the controversial referendum to repeal the state’s tax structure for oil companies.

Federal attorneys have filed more charges as they continue an investigation into Clean Air Act violations at the Westward Seafoods plant in Unalaska.

Between 2009 and 2011, James Hampton was the engineer in charge of Westward's powerhouse. That includes a water injection system for reducing potentially harmful emissions of nitrogen dioxide. 

Prosecutors say that pollution equipment was mostly turned off on Hampton's watch. And now, Hampton is facing a felony charge for giving false data to his environmental compliance manager to make it look like the pollution system was up and running.

Over the past eight months, the village of King Cove has waged a constant campaign to get a road built through the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge -- even suing officials in the Interior Department.

Interior has been mostly silent on the issue until now.

Knik Construction has posted similar "'No' on One" campaign signs at worksites around the Southwest. (Annie Ropeik/KUCB)

In just a few days, Alaskan voters will decide whether to repeal the state’s oil tax system. It’s question one on Tuesday’s primary ballot.

Unalaskans will see plenty of familiar names among the groups that want to keep the current policy, which tries to spur development by cutting taxes for oil producers.

The list includes Knik Construction, which has been paving Unalaska’s roads this summer. They’ve got “Vote ‘No’ on One” signs up on their asphalt plant in Unalaska and at project sites all over the Southwest. And their parent company, Anchorage-based Lynden Construction, has given almost $84,000 to the well-funded “Vote ‘No’” campaign, according to state records.

The deadline to file as a candidate in Unalaska’s municipal election is coming up next Friday, Aug. 22 – and so far, the race is wide open.

There are two city council seats up for election this year – seat B, currently held by Dennis Robinson, and seat E, held by Zoya Johnson. Both of their three-year terms expire this fall.

There are also three school board seats on the ballot this year – they’re currently held by Cathy Jordan, Denise Rankin and Fernando Barrera.

Four local businesses helped arrange the hazmat scene on Front Beach. (Lauren Rosenthal/KUCB)

Fire trucks and military officers in hazmat suits swarmed Front Beach Wednesday night.

But the risk wasn't real: It was all part of a drill for Unalaska’s fire department and the National Guard’s visiting Civil Support Team.

KUCB’s Lauren Rosenthal was there, and has this postcard from the scene.

(Credit: Nancy Heise)

Sand Point police received a tip from a ferry employee while the Tustumena was still on its way into port.

A C-130 dropped the Civil Response Team in Unalaska on Sunday. (Lauren Rosenthal/KUCB)

An elite team of emergency responders is visiting Unalaska this week to test their skills in unfamiliar territory.

The Civil Support Team is an offshoot of Alaska’s Air National Guard, based in Anchorage.

"With traditional guardsmen, it generally takes a little while to call them out," says Captain William Yeo. "But we’re always on a one-hour leash to head out the door."