KFSK Midday Magazine

Petersburg's fire marshal determined the source of the blaze that consumed St. Catherine of Siena Catholic Church last week;

Alaska's Division of Air Quality is issuing an alert for Southeast Alaska for smoke from Canadian wildfires;

and Petersburg's James A. Johnson recieved a special visitor for the Fourth of July: James A. Johnson, himself.

Petersburg celebrated the arrival of the Hōkūleʻa, a Hawai'ian voyaging canoe;

the Sitka Fine Arts Camp is suing three federal agencies over a visa issue that concerns one of the camp's employees;

and the mayor of a Canadian port city mourns the loss of the ferry service that used to connect his community to Southeast Alaska.

Smoke from wildfires in Western Canada has arrived in Southeast Alaska;

Rail workers in Skagway voted to authorize a strike;

and KFSK sent Thomas Copeland to document his very first Independence Day celebration.

The U.S. Coast Guard held a change of command ceremony in Petersburg;

Wrangell is developing a couple dozen housing lots;

and a Sitka high school student spent the spring semester making his rock 'n' roll dreams come true in shop class.

Petersburg's catholic church, St. Catherine of Siena, caught fire and burned for more than ten hours;

Southeast Alaska is in for a heatwave this weekend;

and NOAA biologists are asking people to watch out for two humpback whales that were seen tangled in fishing gear near Juneau.

A Petersburg resident won the annual Tongass ToughMan triathlon;

Unalaska is gearing up to monitor for invasive European green crabs;

and Homer celebrated its annual Highland Games.

Petersburg's Borough Assembly approved a three-year agreement with the union representing its municipal employees;

a grand jury indicted three Sitkans on charges ranging from assault and burglary to driving a boat under the influence,

and some Southeast troll fishing boats will double as climate research vessels as part of a new citizne science program.

Petersburg School District did not include the state funding that was ultimately vetoed by Governor Dunleavy as they planned the budget for next year; The Pride Month Art Show at Clausen Museum closes today; NOAA is conducting bottom trawl surveys to study Alaska's marine environment; Trollers start fishing July 1st with a mix of emotions

A Petersburg lumber mill received a federal grant intended to encourage more logging in the Tongass;

The Yukon River chum salmon run is coming in below average, but just enough to allow a subsistence harvest;

Weapons experts are looking into a suspected unexploded device on the shores of Unalaska.

The Petersburg Ministerial Association blessed the fishing fleet;

The Ketchikan City Council is discussing a variety of ideas to change the city's only 24/7 emergency shelter;

And voting is underway in the Alaska artistic license plate competition.