Council will vote on a final plan for paying off big upgrades to the city’s utilities at tonight's meeting.

The city's consultant, Mike Hubbard, has put together a plan that would raise water rates by 7 percent, wastewater rates by 14 percent, and solid waste fees by 11 percent. Those increases would start on July 1. But the rates would increase again next July, and again the year after that, by the same percentages.

Pilots saw Pavlof Volcano spitting a small amount of ash on May 22, 2013. (Courtesy of Ryan Hazen and Brandon Wilson)

There’s still some rumbling and a few small explosions here and there. But for the most part, Pavlof Volcano on the Alaska Peninsula has quieted down.

Two UniSea bartenders have been charged with felony theft for allegedly taking cash from the Harbor View Bar.

Ethan Higa, 24, and Sara Katz, 31, are accused of stealing a total of $1500 from the bar this winter.

According to court documents, UniSea’s human resources staff got police involved after an internal investigation into the missing money went nowhere. 

When volcanoes spring to life in Alaska, aviators and residents rely on the Alaska Volcano Observatory for information.

KUCB's Vic Fisher spoke with John Power, the scientist in charge of the AVO, about what the agency's doing to keep up with Pavlof.

Courtesy of Joe Redmon

Fire personnel responded to a small blaze in the valley this afternoon.

Senior fire captain Zac Schasteen says a caller reported that someone started a campfire at the bottom of General's Hill, but failed to properly supervise it.

Clouds blanket Pavlof Volcano on May 21, 2013 / Courtesy of Mitch Johnson

Heavy cloud cover over the Alaska Peninsula is making it tough for scientists to monitor Pavlof Volcano.

The Alaska Volcano Observary hasn't been able to get a clear picture of the peak by satellite for almost two days. Still, there's some indication that the eruption might be easing up a little.

Pavlof Volcano shoots ash on May 16. (Courtesy of Theo Chesley)

Passenger and cargo airlines in southwest Alaska have been watching Pavlof Volcano closely, trying to determine whether it’s safe to fly past the peak.

PenAir restarted service throughout the state today, adding extra flights to Unalaska to relieve a backlog of passengers.

But as KUCB’s Lauren Rosenthal reports, the outlook from here on is mixed.

A factory trawler that frequently participates in the Bering Sea pollock fishery caught fire Monday afternoon.

The catcher-processor Arctic Storm was working off the coast of Grays Harbor, Washington, processing Pacific whiting, when a fire started in the engine room.

The Coast Guard sent helicopters and lifeboats to the scene to help evacuate crew. According to the vessel's parent company, Arctic Storm Management Group, none of the 120 people on board were injured. The 334-foot ship is being towed back to port so the owners can assess the damage.

An operator error down at the power plant caused a brief blackout in Unalaska.

Public utilities director Dan Winters says an employee was performing maintenance at about 12:15 p.m. Tuesday. The person tripped the wrong breaker, accidentally turning off a diesel engine in the process.

Winters says there isn’t any backup system for an outage like that. Employees restarted the engine, and then reset the town breakers. The lights were only out for 14 minutes. Most of town was affected, except for the East Point Road neighborhood and the area near the spit dock.