Unalaska, AK – Public safety extinguished a vehicle fire Saturday afternoon at Westward Seafoods. The fire started around 1:20 pm. A fire fighter who was already at the scene used heavy equipment to push the vehicle away from any buildings as police and fire personnel arrived on scene. Within 15 minutes the fire was put out and traffic was allowed to pass by the area. The vehicle was not turned on when the fire started. Investigation into the incident showed that recent electrical work was the likely cause of the blaze. The vehicle was extensively damaged and it is unknown if it can be repaired of if it will be declared a total loss.

Unalaska, AK – The state's Board of Fisheries is considering closing Unalaska Bay to all trawling year round. At present, the pelagic trawl fleet is allowed to harvest in the Bay during pollock B season, from June 10 to November 1. Many local residents and the Unalaska/Dutch Harbor Fish and Game Advisory Committee want the area to be closed to all trawling year round. This week, city council also unanimously approved a resolution supporting the closure.

Unalaska, AK – A TWIC office will open in Unalaska soon. TWIC, or Transportation Worker Identification Credentials, is a federal homeland security program that requires any one who enters or works in secure areas on docks or marine vessels to have an identification card. Applying for the card requires background checks, finger printing, and two visits to an approved TWIC office.

The TWIC office in Anchorage sent a remote registration unit to the community three times over the past two years, but any one who missed the visits had to fly to Anchorage to get the card. Mayor Shirley Marquardt said this is impractical in a community with a constantly fluctuating work force. Starting sometime in February, people will only have to travel to City Hall.

Unalaska, AK – The fuel spill in Adak is under control, and clean-up crews are working in the area. A leaking underground tank released 142,800 gallons of diesel fuel in Adak Monday evening as it was being filled from a tank ship. Most of the fuel was absorbed into the ground, but about 1,000 gallons leaked into the small boat harbor.

According to a report from the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation, the storage tank was overfilled and fuel spilled over into a drainage system that releases water into Helmet Creek and the small boat harbor. The exact cause of the overflow is still under investigation.

Unalaska, AK – The public input process for the new Carl E. Moses small boat harbor inner harbor design is now underway. The City Council awarded the design portion of the contract to Pacific Pile and Marine PND Engineers for $2.4 million in late December. Their proposal was given a technical and cost score and compared to the competing proposal from the Dutra Group. The Pacific Pile proposal's technical score was 500 points higher, and their proposal was much less expensive than their competitors. Public Works Director Nancy Peterson said it is well-suited for the community's needs.

Unalaska, AK – The ferry will arrive twice in Unalaska in May 2010 instead of once, as was previously scheduled. Governor Sean Parnell directed the Alaska Marine Highway system to add another ferry run between Homer and Unalaska because people want more access to the region at the beginning of the summer fishing season. The first run will leave Homer on May 11th and arrive in Unalaska on the 15th. The second run will begin May 25th and arrive on May 29th. As the Tustumena heads west for the second run, the Kennicott will take over the Tusty's normal route. Transportation Commissioner Leo von Scheben says the Kodiak Crab Festival will benefit from this change because the larger Kennicott can carry larger, more exciting carnival rides for the Memorial Day weekend event. The Marine Advisory Transportation Board requested that ferry service be increased to twice for every month but that is not in the current budget proposal for fiscal year 2011.

Unalaska, AK – Adak Seafoods, the new owner of the fish processing plant in Adak, was recently served a "notice to quit" by their landlords, Aleut Enterprise, LLC. The notice said that the company's lease to use the buildings expired on December 31, 2009 and the company must vacate the premises. Aleut Enterprise President Rudy Tsukada said they are not forcing the company out because of any ill-will toward the new owners.

Unalaska, AK – A new cooperative research project is looking at opilio crab bycatch mortality. Researchers want to know how many of the female and sublegal male crabs that are caught during the fishery survive after being put back into the water. It is illegal to keep them. Before the fishery was rationalized, fishery managers assumed that 50 percent of the bycatch crabs died. Marine Conservation Alliance Foundation cooperative research coordinator Earl Krygier said that number might be lower now.

Unalaska, AK – Community members from around the Aleutians, the Pribilofs, and the Alaska Peninsula met Tuesday via teleconference to discuss creating jobs in our communities. The Community Jobs Forum was organized by the Aleutian Pribilof Islands Association Inc. to gather information on local economic conditions to submit to the White House. The Obama Administration is collecting the information in an effort to create an effective plan for job creation through out the country.