Unalaska, AK – The Stellar Sea's return to the Bering Sea fishing grounds is still weeks away, but repair work on the processing ship is proceeding as planned.
Mark Weed, the president of ship owner Stellar Seafoods, said that the company is still figuring on two weeks' repair time for the Stellar Sea, which caught on fire in the Bering Sea eight days ago.
The processors who were slated to work onboard the vessel this season have been flown home from Unalaska, although the ship's crew is still on hand for repair work. Harris Electric manager Spencer Ellsworth, whose company is handling electrical repairs on the Stellar Sea, said that they're installing about a mile of new wire in the vessel, and bringing in extra help to get the job done in a hurry.
Unalaska, AK – Some city services are shut down on account of today's blizzard conditions in Unalaska. The Department of Parks, Culture and Recreation is closed this afternoon, as is the landfill, and the city's non-essential personnel were sent home early. The Unalaska School District has cancelled after-school activities as well.
The Public Safety Department has issued a Category 2 travel advisory, which means that you shouldn't travel unless absolutely necessary. Whiteout conditions have made travel around town difficult so far this afternoon.
Unalaska, AK – The Unalaska Raiders went winless in their games against Nome Tuesday.
The girls team lost 66-20 in the first game last night. The boys did slightly better but still fell behind, 69-52, in the evening's second game.
Unalaska and Nome will rematch tonight at 6:00 and 7:30. Tomorrow the Raiders continue on to the Husky Shootout in Kotzebue, where they'll play Kotzebue, Selawik and Point Hope.
Unalaska, AK – A Seattle couple is planning to walk, raft and ski from the front door of their house to the Aleutian Islands. The 4,000-mile journey will begin in June, and take about nine months. KIAL's Charles Homans reports.
Unalaska, AK – Inspections of the processing ship Stellar Sea upon its arrival in Dutch Harbor yesterday suggest that the vessel suffered less damage than was feared at first.
The vessel was towed into port by tugboat after it was disabled by an engine room fire in the middle of the Bering Sea Tuesday night. Mark Weed, the president of Seattle-based Stellar Seafoods, which owns the Stellar Sea, said he didn't want to comment extensively on the condition of the vessel, but he said that initial inspections suggested the electrical damage wasn't as bad as he had expected it to be.
Unalaska, AK – The Unalaska Bay tanner crab fishery closes at 5:59 p.m. today. The state Department of Fish & Game estimates that the fishery will near the 49,000 pound guideline harvest level by that time. The Akutan Bay fishery will remain open until further notice.
Unalaska, AK – The processing vessel Stellar Sea was towed into Dutch Harbor at about 3:20 p.m. Thursday afternoon. The ship's crew is safe and sound, but the damage to the vessel could cause a snag in this year's opilio crab season. In Unalaska, KIAL's Charles Homans reports.
Unalaska, AK – A fishing boat that ran aground Tuesday morning on Hog Island is waiting on a marine assessor to determine whether the ship can be fully repaired in Dutch Harbor.
The 93-foot Arctic Hunter ran aground on the north end of Hog Island at 4:30 a.m. yesterday and was pulled loose four hours later by another fishing boat, then towed by the tugboat Saratoga to Magone Marine Service. According to the Coast Guard Dutch Harbor marine safety detachment, the vessel's hull was torn in several places and its engine room flooded.
Unalaska, AK – A large fish processing vessel is being towed to Dutch Harbor by a Coast Guard cutter this evening following an engine room fire Tuesday night.
The 316-foot Stellar Sea was on its way from Seattle to St. Paul Island when the fire broke out at about 10:20 p.m. Tuesday. According to the Coast Guard, the fire was extinguished within an hour and there weren't any injuries or fatalities, but the ship is currently without power, propulsion or steering. The vessel has 142 people on board.
