Robert Woolsey, KCAW - Sitka

Robert Woolsey, KCAW - Sitka
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Robert Woolsey is the news director at KCAW in Sitka.
A photo of an electric meter on the side of a building

Sitka charter operator pleads guilty to electricity theft estimated at $200K

Under a plea agreement, Richard A. Forst must pay $144,925 in restitution to the City of Sitka and fines of $5,200.
A girl in a pink swim cap looks across a lane standing in a pool

Gold medalist Lydia Jacoby shares stories and laps with young Sitka swimmers

“I am inspired,” said one fan at the hour-long event “Inspired at how much faster she is than I am.”
Two seiner boats pull up nets in front of a rainforest town

The state has set a record harvest for Sitka herring, but a weak market will keep many of those fish in the water

Seiners landed only 16,000 tons of herring last year, which was just under half of the harvest guideline. In 2020 and 2019, there were no fisheries at all.
A man poses for a photo with a piece of art, and also a piece of art of him.

Dave Galanin remembered as a ‘Dog’ who carved in silver, but strummed in blues

The passing of Sitkan Dave Galanin in December was a two-fold loss for Alaska: He was a renown engraver in the Northwest Coast tradition, and he was singer and slide-guitarist from somewhere deep within the Delta blues.
A brown bear walks on a gravel path near bushes.

If Sitkans keep leaving out unsecured trash, the bears will keep coming, warns Fish and Game

A domestic chicken has about as many calories as a salmon, and even a greasy pizza box is rich in calories.
fat sow with white ears

Well-known white-eared bear found dead of gunshot wound in Sitka neighborhood

The sow was recognizable to many Sitkans for her white-tipped ears. Recently, she had been featured as the cover image on the Sitka Bear Report social media page. (Sitka Bear Report/Sam Schenck)
A giant brown bear paw.

Sitka committee wants to bring back bear task force after deadly season for brown bears

Thirteen brown bears have been killed in Sitka — 12 by wildlife authorities and one by a car.

An invasive parasite is taking over Alaska blue mud shrimp. Researchers want to kill it.

Orthione griffenis, or O. griffenis, eventually kills its host shrimp, and soon the remaining shrimp can’t find each other to reproduce, rendering a blue mud shrimp population extinct.
A white cruise ship on a dock

Arrival of Alaska’s first cruise ship of 2021 coincided with a major coronavirus outbreak in Sitka

Serenade of the Seas’ arrival coincided with a major coronavirus outbreak in Sitka, but that didn’t seem to affect the number of passengers visiting town — all of whom were vaccinated, except for children. There simply weren’t that many of them.
A cruise ship next to a forested hill

Sitka should prepare for a deluge of cruise passengers in 2022, dock owner says

Industry insiders say despite the potential loss of the 2021 season, 2022 could be the biggest cruise season ever.
A school building

Sitka looks to rename Baranof Elementary School after Native educator

The Sitka School Board recently decided to send the question of the name change to the Sitka Tribe, in hopes of identifying a “significant local cultural educator.”
A white coast guard boat with an overlay of some details about its construction

Trump’s defense veto could sink Sitka’s Coast Guard dock

President Trump’s veto of the National Defense Authorization Act has put Sitka’s plans for a new Coast Guard fast-response cutter on the rocks.
A black bear emerges from a clump of alders into a grassy lawn

Search underway for bear following ‘predatory’ attack on a neighborhood dog in Sitka

Although the dog’s body was recovered, officials believe the attack was predatory, and they intend to destroy the bear when it’s found.
In a black and white photo, Richard Bingham walks towards a chair as a woman whose back is turned pulls ist out.

LISTEN: Richard Bingham was acquitted in murder cold case, but accusation clouded his life – until now

Bingham confessed to the crime, despite evidence that he didn't commit the murder of 17-year-old Baggen. But even after he was acquitted, his life wasn't the same.
A white sign on a wall says "Trash isn't traditional/Keep Angoon beautiful)

With six new cases in one day, Angoon goes into lockdown

The new cases take Angoon’s total to eight, prompting Mayor Joshua Bowen to issue an emergency order requiring all travelers to the community to self-isolate for two weeks on arrival.
A white woman with blond hair in a white suit and an arm in a black sling speaks on a podium with the DPS logo and two photos of a teenage girl on an easel on the lefthand side of the image

24 years after her death on a Sitka bike path, genetic evidence leads to Jessica Baggen’s killer

DNA evidence led investigators to a 66-year old man living in Arkansas, who took his own life last week, shortly after Alaska investigators arrived to question him.

Rocket’s red glare injures three in Sitka fireworks mishap

A pyrotechnician said that there was a malfunction during the finale, which “for reasons unknown” launched more quickly than planned.

Federal court opinion a win for Southeast Alaska’s summer king season

An environmental group fought for an injunction that would stop king salmon fishing in Southeast Alaska in order to protect orcas.

Federal judge questions venue for king salmon injunction in orca case

While the Wild Fish Conservancy has asked for an injunction that would stop all chinook salmon fisihing in Alaska, Alaska trollers say that there is more than just fish at stake.