Author: kfskadmin

A large landslide covered a section of Mitkof highway in Petersburg Sunday night. No one was injured, but debris blocked the road, damaged culverts and knocked out electricity to many residents. State and city workers spent several hours on the scene, clearing the roadway and power lines.

The state’s Office of Children’s Services says it will keep a social worker in Petersburg. The local OCS branch covers child abuse and neglect cases in Petersburg, Wrangell and Kake. Area residents and social service officials had feared the agency was going to move both of its Petersburg-based social worker jobs to Juneau.

Petersburg’s Community Cold storage had its biggest season yet this summer – Big enough that the facility is expected to do better than break even this fiscal year.

Over five thousand US service men and women have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to the Defense Department. Nearly 35 thousand more have been wounded in the two wars.
Earlier this month, six wounded soldiers from Alaska’s Fort Richardson spent a weekend in Petersburg for some rest and relaxation. Their trip was part of the Alaska State Elks Association’s Wounded Veterans Project, which is aimed at helping injured vets and raising awareness about their needs. The program compliments the Army’s own wounded warrior battalions that were set up to aid injured soldiers upon their return home.
The Fort Richardson group was hosted by the local elks club which honored the vets at club dinners and took them fishing for halibut and king salmon. Local residents and businesses donated accommodations and fish processing.
Matt Lichtenstein spoke with several of the soldiers shortly after they arrived:

As congress has gone back into session, Petersburg officials are keeping a close eye on a variety of funding requests for local projects. Topping the list is the town’s new fire hall. There’s also north harbor replacement, the airport bypass road to scow bay and plenty more. Like many other towns in Alaska, Petersburg contracts with a lobbying firm to help represent its interests in Washington, DC. Petersburg’s federal lobbyist is Brad Gillman with the law firm of Hoffman, Silver, Gillman and Blasco. One of the firm’s D-C consultants, Sebastian O’Kelly, visited Petersburg late last month to talk with city officials about local priorities. He also spoke with KFSK’s Matt Lichtenstein: