Robert Woolsey, KCAW, Author at KCAW

Business survey adds up losses during Sitka’s summer internet outage

The Sitka business community wants to quantify the economic impact of the internet outage. A survey has been circulating since September, and will close before Thanksgiving. Organizers hope the results will help Sitka advocate for a more robust connection, or at least redundancy.

Despite permitting delays, Sitka officials break ground on new marine haulout

Sitka has ceremonially broken ground on a new marine haulout at its industrial park. The actual groundbreaking has been held up by environmental permitting, but city officials are optimistic that the facility will be hauling boats out of the water next spring.

With ‘Big Breath In,’ author John Straley risks sleeping on the couch — forever

John Straley's latest novel 'Big Breath In' is a departure from his typical crime stories. With a main character based on his wife, noted humpback whale biologist Jan Straley, the author makes a case for an extraordinary heroine.

One year after Air Station Sitka crash, assessing risk remains ‘more art than science’

In Part 2 of a two-part conversation with Air Station Sitka commander Rand Semke, KCAW’s Robert Woolsey examines the Coast Guard’s risk management strategy when lives are on the line and how the crew of CG6016 – despite losing their aircraft – was deemed fit to fly again.

Investigation finds crash of an Air Station Sitka helicopter was ‘controlled flight into terrain’

One year ago, on November 13, 2023, a helicopter from Air Station Sitka crashed onshore while assisting a fishing boat in Farragut Bay, about 22 miles from Petersburg. The helicopter crew suffered serious injuries, but all four survived. KCAW has acquired the MII (Major Incident Investigation) report and learned both the cause of the accident, and the challenges inherent in rescue aviation.

SeaBank Summit meets in Sitka November 13

Seabank is an annualy report that quantifies the economic value of the Southeast Alaska ecosystem, not just in extracted resources, but also in terms of community strength and environmental health. The first Seabank Summit is scheduled for November 13 in Sitka.

‘Barkadas’ debut at Sitka School Board meeting

The Sitka School Board received a structural report of the Blatchley Pool when it met on Tuesday (11-5-24), and while the news isn’t terrible, it’s not particularly good, either. In other business, the board learned about the new Filipino Culture Club, revised the start date for pre-K, and sparred with the business manager over pay on early dismissal days.

Sitkans divided on presidency, but strongly back Peltola for Congress

Politics would look a little different in the US, if the residents of Sitka and surrounding communities were in charge. Here’s a look at how voting on Election Day in our area compares to state and national results.

Council candidates share views on Tribal issues in election forum

Not every exciting election this November is happening at the national level. This year’s race for Sitka Tribal Council has attracted more candidates than past years – all with diverse opinions about where Sitka’s sovereign tribal government should be going. The candidates appeared in an election forum on October 28.

As the Army begins the cleanup of Shoals Point, one Sitkan feels the losses outweigh the gains

Cleanup work began this fall on a former WWII defense site near Sitka, and some residents have already found the scale of the project disturbing. But the Army Corps of Engineers says Fort Babcock on Kruzof Island is heavily contaminated relative to other former WWII sites in Alaska, and the toxins present remain dangerous even 80 years after the war.