Photo of the Month Ketchikan: Memorial Day Ceremories Planned - Ketchikan Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 4352 and American Legion Post 3 will host ceremonies to honor the fallen on Memorial Day, May 27, 2019, as well as open houses for the community to meet local veterans and enjoy light refreshments.  Memorial Day is an American holiday, observed on the last Monday of May, honoring the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. military. The primary ceremony will be held at the Bay View Cemetery Mausoleum at 11 a.m. Guest speakers for the event include: Commander Ashley Holt, U.S.C.G. Base Ketchikan; Mayor David Landis, Ketchikan Gateway Borough; and Chere Klein of the offices of Senators Murkowski & Sullivan. There will also be a wreath laying by VFW and American Legion Auxiliaries, prayers by the Post Chaplains, and the playing of taps.  “I hope to see many members of our community come together to honor the fallen and celebrate the quality of individuals who, facing the worst of humanity, risk their life for the benefit of others,” said Paul Robbins Jr., Commander of VFW Post 4352. - More... Friday PM - May 24, 2019 GAVEL ALASKA: Live coverage of the Alaska legislature, including committee meetings, Alaska senate and house floor sessions, press conferences and other legislative events. In addition, oral arguments before the Alaska Supreme Court are covered, administration press conferences and briefings, general government activities, and other meetings about legislative issues or of political interest.Watch Live or Watch Archives 360North.org Alaska Legislature - Schedule, live meetings, archived videos, documents. - Click here... Ketchikan: Public Meetings Ketchikan: Upcoming Events Historical Ketchikan June Allen Dave Kiffer Louise B. Harrington Ketchikan Weather Ketchikan's Forecast May: Daily Records 2019 Ketchikan April 2019 Data Ketchikan March 2019 Data Ketchikan Feb. 2019 Data Ketchikan Jan. 2019 Data Nat Weather Service KTN Ketchikan Tides & Currents Sunrise - Sunset Ketchikan Search the News Ketchikan Alaska

Ketchikan: NTSB Publishes Preliminary Report for Investigation of Ketchikan Mid-Air Collision, Calls for Greater Safety Measures for For-Hire Flights - The National Transportation Safety Board  on Wednesday released the preliminary report for its investigation of the May 13, 2019, fatal mid-air collision near Ketchikan, one in a string of recent accidents involving for-hire aircraft.

The collision between a float-equipped Mountain Air de Havilland DHC-2 Beaver and a float-equipped Taquan de Havilland DHC-3 Turbine Otter occurred about seven miles northeast of Ketchikan. The Mountain Air DHC-2 commercial pilot and four passengers sustained fatal injuries and the Taquan DHC-3 certificated airline transport pilot sustained minor injuries, nine passengers sustained serious injuries and one passenger sustained fatal injuries. 

Both aircraft involved in the mid-air collision were operating under Part 135 of FAA regulations, which govern the operation of business and charter flights. So was the airplane that crashed Monday, May 20th in Metlakatla, Alaska and the helicopter that crashed in Hawaii April 29.

“While these tragic accidents are still under investigation, and no findings or causes have been determined, each crash underscores the urgency of improving the safety of charter flights by implementing existing NTSB safety recommendations,” said Robert L. Sumwalt, Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board. “The need for those improvements is why the NTSB put Part 135 aircraft flight operations on the 2019 – 2020 Most Wanted List of transportation safety improvements.”

The NTSB’s safety recommendations call on Part 135 operators to implement safety management systems, record and analyze flight data, and ensure pilots receive controlled-flight-into-terrain avoidance training. Major passenger airlines, which operate under Part 121, have adopted these measures and have seen a great improvement in safety.

“A customer who pays for a ticket should trust that the operator is using the industry’s best practices when it comes to safety,’’ Sumwalt said. “And it shouldn’t matter if the operator has one airplane or 100. Travelers should have an equivalent level of safety regardless of the nature of the flight for which they paid.” 

The preliminary report on the investigation of the May 13 mid-air collision does not discuss probable cause. The report contains information gathered thus far in the investigation.

Determination of probable cause and the issuance of any safety recommendations comes at the end of an investigation. Investigations involving fatalities and other major NTSB investigations currently take between 12 and 24 months to complete.

Quoting the preliminary report:

On Monday, May 13, 2019, about 12:21 PM Alaska daylight time, a float-equipped De Havilland DHC-2 (Beaver) airplane, N952DB, and a float-equipped De Havilland DHC-3 (Turbine Otter) airplane, N959PA, collided in midair PM, about 7 miles northeast of Ketchikan, Alaska.

The Taquan DHC-3 airline transport pilot sustained minor injuries, nine passengers sustained serious injuries, and one passenger sustained fatal injuries. The DHC-3 sustained substantial damage during the collision and impact with the water.

The Mountain Air DHC-2 was destroyed during the collision, uncontrolled descent, and impact with tree covered terrain and water. The DHC-2 was registered to and operated by Mountain Air Service, LLC, Ketchikan, Alaska, under the provisions of Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 135 as an on-demand sightseeing flight, and a Federal Aviation Administration flight plan was filed for the DHC-2.

The Taquan DHC-3 was registered to Pantechnicon Aviation LTD, Minden, Nevada, and operated by Venture Travel, LLC, dba Taquan Air, Ketchikan, Alaska, under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 135 as an on-demand sightseeing flight, and company flight following procedures were in effect for the DHC-3.

Visual meteorological conditions prevailed in the area at the time of the accident. Both airplanes were based at the Ketchikan Harbor Seaplane Base (5KE), and both were returning to Ketchikan at the time of the accident.

According to information provided by both operators, the purpose of both flights was to transport passengers to Ketchikan from the Misty Fjords National Monument area which was located about 30 nautical miles northeast of Ketchikan. - More...
Friday PM - May 24, 2019

Alaska: Third Dead Gray Whale Found in Alaska This Month; NOAA Fisheries is closely tracking increase in gray whale strandings along the West Coast - NOAA Fisheries and stranding partners are tracking a spike in gray whale mortalities along the west coast of the United States during their spring migration. To date, 60 gray whales have been reported stranded dead along the west coast, from Mexico to Alaska. Of those necropsied, many were found to be skinny and malnourished. According to NOAA, it is not unusual to have 2-3 gray whale strandings in Alaska by this time of the year.

Most recently, NOAA received a report of a  gray whale stranded along the coast of Kodiak. The report came in late Tuesday to NOAA's Office of Law Enforcement Kodiak Office and the Sun'aq Tribe of Kodiak, a NOAA marine mammal stranding partner. Necropsies were performed on the first two whales; however, the Kodiak whale is located along the rocky shore below a steep cliff and considered inaccessible for a necropsy.

This is the third dead gray whale reported this month in Alaska, along with a carcass reported beached on the Copper River Delta and another in Turnagain Arm.

NOAA first received report of the Copper River Delta dead whale on May 14, but the tide carried it offshore. A Kodiak-based helicopter crew from the U.S. Coast Guard relocated the whale on Friday, May 17. The USCG responders collected tissue samples and photos for NOAA biologists.

“We are thankful for our strong partnerships,” said Alaska Regional Assistant Stranding Coordinator Sadie Wright. “The Coast Guard air crew kept an eye out for this animal and got our team out there asap after locating it." - More...
Friday PM - May 24, 2019

Southeast Alaska: Captain of Fishing Vessel “Alaskan Girl” Sentenced for Unlawful Discharge of a Pollutant into Sumner Strait; Cameraman for Reality TV Show Captured Footage of Unlawful Discharge of Sandblasting Waste into Ocean - Brannon Finney, 32, of Bellingham, Washington, was sentenced Wednesday by U.S. Magistrate Judge Matthew Scoble after having pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful discharge of a pollutant, a violation of the Clean Water Act.  The Court ordered Finney to pay a fine of $8,000, pay an additional $2,000 to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation as a community service payment; and perform 40 hours of community work service.  Finney will be on probation for 18 months and is required to post a public apology.

According to court documents, Finney, as captain of the F/V Alaskan Girl, caused the crew to dump approximately 16,000 pounds of sandblast waste into Sumner Strait.  Specifically, on June 15, 2017, F/V Alaskan Girl was in route from Wrangell to Petersburg, Alaska with four bags, known as super sacks or brailer bags, on board.  Each bag weighed approximately 4,000 pounds and contained sandblast waste.  The waste, generated from the recent re-painting of the F/V Alaskan Girl, was a mixture of the copper slag used to remove the paint from the vessel as well as approximately 15 gallons of paint chips removed in the sandblast process.  The waste – totaling eight tons – had been loaded onto the vessel at the direction of Finney.  - More...
Friday PM - May 24, 2019

Southeast Alaska: Felon Sentenced to Federal Prison for Illegal Possession of Firearm at Juneau Airport - A convicted felon was sentenced Monday for illegally possessing a firearm at Juneau International Airport. 

Ryan Matthew Neely, 41, of Woodenville, Washington, was sentenced in Juneau by Chief U.S. District Judge Timothy M. Burgess to serve 21 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release.  In October 2018, Neely pleaded guilty to being a felon in possession of a firearm.  The sentencing announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Bryan Schroder.

According to court documents, on Feb. 20, 2018, Neely was trying to clear security at Juneau International Airport with a duffle bag that contained a loaded firearm with a round in the chamber.  When confronted by law enforcement, Neely claimed he had no knowledge about the firearm and that he grabbed the bag from someone else, not knowing there was a firearm inside.  - More...
Friday PM - May 24, 2019

Alaska: Assisted Living Home Owner Sentenced for Medical Assistance Fraud Scheme - Anchorage Superior Court Judge Patrick McKay has sentenced 75-year-old Margaret Williams and her assisted living home corporation, Flamingo Eye LLC, for defrauding the State of Alaska Medicaid system.

Williams was sentenced on Monday to serve a term of eighteen months in jail. An additional three and a half years are suspended, for a total potential sentence of up to five years in jail. Her corporation, Flamingo Eye LLC was sentenced to a $2,050,000 fine. In crafting the sentences, Judge McKay found that he needed to reaffirm the community’s standards and deter other members of the community from exploiting disabled individuals to defraud Medicaid.

The State also asked Judge McKay to issue a restitution order in the amount of $1.1 million, to compensate for the funds that Williams and Flamingo Eye LLC fraudulently obtained from the Alaska Medicaid system. A hearing to determine the amount of restitution has been set for July.

The jury acquitted Williams’ daughter, Princess Turay, of all charges.  Williams’ son, Donald Kallon, currently has a warrant out for his arrest and the State believes he has left the country.  Williams’ former employee, Wilson Esapa, had his charges dismissed in exchange for testifying at trial. - More...
Friday PM - May 24, 2019

Alaska: Hot spots in rivers that nurture salmon 'flicker on and off' in Alaska's Bristol Bay region - Chemical signatures imprinted on tiny stones that form inside the ears of fish show that two of Alaska's most productive salmon populations, and the fisheries they support, depend on the entire watershed.

Sockeye and Chinook salmon born in the Nushagak River and its network of streams and lakes in southwest Alaska use the whole basin as youngsters when searching for the best places to find prey, shelter and safety from predators. From birth until the fish migrate to the ocean a year later is a critical period for young salmon to eat and grow.

By analyzing each fish's ear stone -- called an otolith -- scientists have found that different parts of the watershed are hot spots for salmon production and growth, and these favorable locations change year to year depending on how climate conditions interact with local landscape features like topography to affect the value of habitats.

The new study, led by the University of Washington, appears May 24 in Science.

"We found that the areas where fish are born and grow flicker on and off each year in terms of productivity," said lead author Sean Brennan, a postdoctoral researcher at the UW School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences. "Habitat conditions aren't static, and optimal places shift around. If you want to stabilize fish production over the years, the only strategy is to keep all of the options on the table."

The Nushagak River watershed is the largest river basin in the Alaska's Bristol Bay region, which supports the biggest sockeye salmon fishery in the world and provides about 50 percent of wild sockeye globally. It is also known for its large run of Chinook salmon.

The new study coincides with renewed efforts to gain permits for the Pebble Mine, a proposed copper and gold excavation near the headwaters of the Nushagak River. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' draft environmental analysis considered only two or three years of fish counts in specific locations in proximity to the proposed mine. It states that fish habitat lost to the mine could be recreated elsewhere. - More...
Friday PM - May 24, 2019

Ancient human footprint discovered in Alaska
By JEFF RICHARDSON
University of Alaska Fairbanks doctoral candidate Gerad Smith does a final cleaning of an 1,800-year-old footprint in a University of Alaska Anchorage lab before making a 3D image of the print.
Photo By Gerad Smith

Alaska: Ancient human footprint discovered in Alaska By JEFF RICHARDSON - The discovery of a prehistoric footprint at an Interior Alaska archaeological site is helping researchers create a more detailed picture of ancient Athabascan family life.

Researchers discovered the footprint, which likely belonged to a pre-teen child, in 2017 near a dwelling unearthed at the Swan Point archaeological site, located in the Shaw Creek Flats near Big Delta. Made more than 1,800 years ago, it’s the oldest known human footprint ever found in the North American sub-Arctic.

The print is among a range of intriguing finds at the site, which archaeologists have explored since archaeologist Charles Holmes discovered the site in 1991. Those include the remnants of dwellings, cache pits and a variety of stone artifacts.

Discovering a footprint at the site still provided a unique thrill, said Gerad Smith, a UAF doctoral candidate.

“As an archaeologist you’re always finding neat things, but when I tell people about this footprint it seems to strike a different emotional nerve,” said Smith, who wrote about the discovery in the March issue of the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports.

Although it represents just a single footprint, the discovery also may help reveal some details about the lives of area inhabitants nearly two millennia ago. Steve Schoenhair, a University of Alaska Anchorage student, found the footprint while excavating a layer that served as the “living floor” of the site, just outside an oval-shaped house pit. - More...
Friday PM - May 24, 2019

Alaska: Melting small glaciers could add 10 inches to sea levels By FRITZ FREUDENBERGER - A new review of glacier research data paints a picture of a future planet with a lot less ice and a lot more water. Glaciers worldwide are projected to lose anywhere from 18% to 36% of their mass by 2100, resulting in almost 10 inches of sea level rise.

The review is the most comprehensive global comparison of glacier simulations ever compiled.

“The clear message is that there’s mass loss—substantial mass loss - all over the world,” said lead author Regine Hock, from the University Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute.

The anticipated loss of ice varies by region, but the pattern is evident.

“We have more than 200 computer simulations, and they all say the same thing. Even though there are some differences, that’s really consistent,” Hock said.

This is the only comprehensive and systematic endeavor to date to compare global-scale glacier models and their projections. The paper is part of GlacierMIP, an international project to compare glacier research to understand glacier changes and their contributions to global sea level rise.

Hock’s study compared 214 glacier simulations from six research groups around the world and “all of them paint the same picture,” Hock said.

These groups tied their own studies to over 25 climate models using a range of climate scenarios. These scenarios are based on several different trajectories for greenhouse gas concentrations and atmospheric conditions adopted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, called the representative concentration pathways, referred to by scientists as RCP. Currently, the planet is moving toward the higher estimates of greenhouse gas concentrations.

Hock and former Geophysical Institute postdoctoral researcher Andrew Bliss, along with other authors, examined the data and results from these studies to work toward a coordinated method for understanding ice loss. - More...
Friday PM - May 24, 2019

JOE GUZZARD: On Memorial Day, Remembering MLB's Fallen WWII Heroes - During World War II, of the 500-plus MLB players who served, only two young Americans were killed. 

Captain Elmer Gedeon, with the USAAF's 86th Bomb Squadron, was shot down on April 20, 1944, over Saint-Pol, France. U.S. Marine Corps First Lieutenant Harry O'Neill lost his life on March 6, 1945, after being hit by Japanese sniper fire on Iwo Jima. O'Neill was one of 92 4th Marine Division officers that died on Iwo Jima. The invaluable website Baseballinwartime.com has more than 500 stories about baseball players from all levels who participated in the nation's great wars.

Gedeon and O'Neill were outstanding young men, their parents' pride and joy, admired in their communities and beloved by all. Graduates of the University of Michigan and Gettysburg College, respectively, Gedeon and O'Neill had wonderful futures - although perhaps not in the major leagues. Their experiences in the bigs were limited. In 1939, Gedeon played outfield during five games for the Washington Senators, and came to bat five times with one hit. O'Neill, a catcher, appeared in one game for the 1939 Philadelphia Athletics, but had no plate appearances.

During their college years, Gedeon and O'Neill were superstar athletes who dominated in multiple sports. The 6-foot-4, 200-pound Gedeon excelled at baseball and track for the Wolverines. But ultimately, Gedeon cast his lot with baseball, and signed a contract with the Senators. 

Gedeon's minor league performances impressed Senators' manager Bucky Harris, but he received his military summons in January 1941. Navigating a B-52 in 1942 on a North Carolina training flight, Gedeon's plane crashed and burst into flames, killing two. Gedeon freed himself from the wreckage, and badly injured he returned to save his fellow pilots still trapped inside. While on his last leave, Gedeon promised his cousin that he would "be back in baseball" when the war ended. But on Gedeon's thirteenth B-26 European bombing mission, five days after his 27th birthday, anti-aircraft fire hit his plane, killing him and five others.

At Gettysburg, O'Neill starred on the gridiron, the hardcourt and the baseball diamond. Connie Mack's Philadelphia A's signed O'Neill, a 6-foot-3 catcher, and he spent the 1939 season as the team's third string-catcher. During the ninth inning of a July 23, 16-3 drubbing at the Detroit Tigers' hands, Mack inserted O'Neill into the lineup as a defensive replacement, but he never got a turn at bat. After the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, O'Neill's life changed forever. O'Neill enlisted in the Marines, and graduated from Quantico as a second lieutenant. His next stop was Camp Pendleton, California, and, now a first lieutenant in the Fourth Marine Division, he was shipped out to the Pacific Theater on January 13, 1944. After landing on Iwo Jima on February 19, 1945, and moving slowly inward, the Marines were under intense, nonstop fire. By day's end, March 6, 28-year-old O'Neill was dead. - More...
Friday PM - May 24, 2019

Political Cartoon: Memorial Day, Empty Boots
By Dave Granlund ©2019, PoliticalCartoons.com
Distributed to paid subscribers for publication by Cagle Cartoons, Inc.