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August 2026
Southeast seiners get another opening, with one district carrying a below-forecast pink season
Southeast seiners get another opening Tuesday, with one district carrying more than half the catch in a pink season running below the regionwide forecast.
by Walter AlaskaNews2mo ago1 min read
Trump takes aim at Alaska's U.S. Senate Primary Election
Trump waded into Alaska's Senate primary, telling voters which of two similarly named Dan Sullivans to pick — flexing GOP-base clout in a state he carried.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago3 min read
Medicare claws back money from Petersburg's hospital as the island's new MRI takes off
Medicare cut Petersburg's hospital outpatient rate and clawed back funds — but the island's brand-new MRI is already beating projections and driving revenue.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Petersburg hospital board weighs buying housing to address staffing gaps
Petersburg Medical Center is exploring buying or building staff housing to fill nursing and technician jobs that now rely on expensive temporary workers.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Petersburg planning commission to vote next month on one-year data center ban
Petersburg's Planning Commission votes September 8 on a one-year data center ban while the borough drafts permanent rules.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
A Petersburg-area drift gillnet fishery opens for about 40 hours
The state will open a fishing section near Petersburg to about 40 hours of unrestricted drift gillnet fishing, from Tuesday evening through Thursday noon.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
A sixth straight weak week points to a below-average chum run near Petersburg
A sixth straight below-average week points to a weak chum run near Petersburg, with pinks running low and mixed, as the season's test fisheries close out.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
King salmon retention at Blind Slough ends Aug. 15
King salmon retention in Blind Slough near Petersburg closes at 11:59 p.m. Aug. 15, ending a summer window that opened after hatchery returns exceeded projections.
by Bill AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
More from Petersburg
July 2026
A small Petersburg timber sale is a marker of the Tongass's long turn away from old growth
A young-growth-only timber sale near Petersburg is a small marker of the Tongass's contested, decades-long turn from old-growth clearcuts to second-growth logging. Bids due Aug. 25.
by Maggie AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Two Dan Sullivans, and a ballot solution the state wrote itself
The court put the second Dan Sullivan on the ballot but left the labeling to the state — and the state's fix leaves him the only candidate of 16 with no party listed.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Petersburg pushed back when the state pulled Sullivan off the ballot
Newly released letters show Petersburg residents demanding the state show its evidence for pulling their neighbor off the Senate ballot.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
Alaska elections hearing reveals FBI contact, no precedent for 'good faith' test
State election officials admit they used a new good-faith test only on one candidate. They still refuse to explain why the FBI called.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago2 min read
Petersburg's Blind Slough opens fully to king salmon as hatchery return surpasses forecast
Petersburg's Blind Slough opens fully to king salmon fishing starting Saturday after Crystal Lake Hatchery's return beat forecasts and broodstock needs were met.
by Bill AlaskaNews3mo ago1 min read
The king window is closing near Petersburg and Wrangell
The king run near Petersburg and Wrangell is past its peak, and the window to fish the hatchery-fed terminal harvest area is closing — with wild-king waters still locked down till July 15.
by Bill AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min readFrom 
A Petersburg cell tower proposal died without a second
A Petersburg cell tower plan died the quietest death possible Tuesday — nobody would even second the motion to approve it.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Petersburg's cell tower rules advance, flaws and all
Petersburg advanced new cell-tower rules 5-0 — but a vice mayor called the 15-amendment process "deeply flawed," and residents are fighting cuts to safety setbacks.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
About Petersburg
Petersburg, also known as Gantiyaakw Séedi, is a fishing community on Mitkof Island along Wrangell Narrows in Southeast Alaska. It is known for its Norwegian heritage, which gives it the nickname Little Norway, and for its salmon, halibut and shrimp fleets.
The Petersburg Borough assembly and planning commission handle land use, taxes and public services, from cell tower siting and data center rules to the landfill and wastewater rates. Voters decide ballot questions such as sales tax measures. Petersburg Medical Center provides hospital care and imaging on the island, and its finances depend on Medicare and Medicaid payments.
Drift gillnet fisheries in Districts 6 and 8 near Petersburg run on openings set by the state. The borough neighbors Wrangell, Sitka and other Southeast communities, and it draws hydropower from the Tyee Lake project of the Southeast Alaska Power Agency, which also serves Ketchikan and Wrangell.
More from Petersburg
Southeast Alaska pink and chum test fisheries run below average ahead of peak season
Southeast Alaska test fisheries show pink and chum salmon running below average, signaling a weaker return ahead of peak season in Frederick Sound and lower Stephens Passage.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
ADF&G extends Districts 6 and 8 drift gillnet fishery 48 hours with mesh and area limits
ADF&G extended the Petersburg-area drift gillnet fishery 48 hours through Saturday noon with a 6-inch mesh cap and subarea closures in District 8 to protect Chinook salmon escapement.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Alaska Supreme Court puts Petersburg's Dan Sullivan back on August ballot
Alaska Supreme Court ordered the Division of Elections to place retired teacher Daniel J. Sullivan Jr. on the August 18 primary ballot alongside U.S. Sen. Dan Sullivan.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
SEAPA files federal notice to begin Tyee Lake relicensing ahead of 2031 expiration
Southeast Alaska Power Agency opened federal relicensing for Tyee Lake hydropower, which expires in 2031 and serves Ketchikan, Petersburg, and Wrangell.
by Maggie AlaskaNewsadded 4mo ago2 min read
DOJ reportedly investigating Alaska's two-Sullivans Senate race
National outlets report the FBI and state investigators are examining Alaska's two-Dan-Sullivans race — a probe into a candidacy the state's high court just ruled entirely legal.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Two rulings just reshaped Alaska's Senate race
The Supreme Court just erased limits on party spending coordinated with candidates — unleashing money into Alaska's Senate race the same week a second Dan Sullivan made the ballot.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
June 2026
Two Alaska towns run on water — and want more of it
Wrangell and Petersburg run on hydropower from a remote mountain lake — and a planned third turbine would draw 12 more megawatts, meaning fewer days burning costly diesel.
by Maggie AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Petersburg's hospital more than doubled its cash reserves in three years
While rural hospitals nationwide struggle, Petersburg's has more than doubled its cash cushion in three years, to 133 days on hand, on tighter billing and better management.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
Petersburg residents can finally get an MRI without leaving the island
Petersburg just got its first MRI, so island residents no longer have to travel off-island for a scan. A July 14 open house lets people tour the new suite.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago1 min read
A judge says Alaska can't keep the second Dan Sullivan off the Senate ballot
A judge put the second Dan Sullivan on the GOP Senate primary ballot, beside the senator he's named like. The state had no "good-faith" rule to keep him off.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
A judge weighs whether Alaska gets two Dan Sullivans
Will the real Dan Sullivan please stand up? We're gonna have a problem here. Y'all act like you never seen two Sullivans before. J's all on the floor, like the "S" walked in and slammed the door.
by Cale Green4mo ago3 min read
Daniel J. Sullivan sued the state today over a denied Senate ballot spot
Denied a Senate ballot spot, Daniel J. Sullivan sued today. Lawmakers held a hearing on the same question the same afternoon.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Petersburg trades a sliver of land for a place to put its 911 gear
Petersburg sold a 0.23-acre scrap of public land so it wouldn't have to build its own tower. 300 signatures couldn't stop the 6-0 yes.
by Walter AlaskaNews4mo ago2 min read
Alaska elections office denies Daniel J. Sullivan's U.S. Senate filing
Alaska election officials denied Petersburg resident Daniel J. Sullivan's U.S. Senate candidacy, finding his filing mimicked incumbent Dan S. Sullivan's name and campaign to confuse voters.
by Walter AlaskaNews5mo ago2 min read
Senator Sullivan threatens legal action over namesake challenger
U.S. Senator Dan Sullivan is threatening legal action against Republican challenger Dan J. Sullivan, a retired teacher from Petersburg, claiming the shared name is designed to confuse voters in Alaska's top-four primary.
by Walter AlaskaNews5mo ago1 min readFrom Petersburg fire training center relocation could cost $800,000-plus
Petersburg fire department must move its training facility from the airport by December 31, with relocation costs exceeding $800,000 and no confirmed funding source yet identified.
by Walter AlaskaNews5mo ago2 min read
Petersburg police, fire face staffing crisis with 5 open positions
Petersburg police have three dispatcher and two patrol officer vacancies while fire and EMS rely on volunteers with limited actual response capacity, complicating plans to expand services to Thomas Bay.
by Walter AlaskaNews5mo ago2 min read
Petersburg to receive Papke's Landing dock, tidelands from state
Petersburg Borough will take ownership of Papke's Landing, a deteriorating state dock and 8.8 acres of tidelands on Wrangell Narrows, but will need to hire staff and buy equipment to maintain the busy public boat launch.
by Alaska News5mo ago1 min read
Petersburg Planning Commission roundup: massage CUP approved, three land sales recommended, Scow Bay rock pits out of wireless overlay
Petersburg Planning Commission approved a home massage business, recommended three land sales, and removed Scow Bay rock pits from a wireless tower overlay after residents cited drinking water concerns.
by Alaska News5mo ago2 min read
The other Dan Sullivan case tests Alaska's election-law limits
Alaska's elections office is investigating whether a Petersburg man filed genuinely as a Republican Senate candidate or used a name similar to incumbent Dan Sullivan to confuse voters.
by Walter AlaskaNews5mo ago3 min read
Alaska investigates U.S. Senate candidate over name confusion claim
Alaska Lt. Gov. Nancy Dahlstrom opened an investigation June 8 into whether U.S. Senate candidate Daniel James Sullivan Jr. of Petersburg filed his declaration of candidacy to confuse voters
by Walter AlaskaNews5mo ago2 min read
Petersburg Medical Center loses bids for facility, equipment grants
Petersburg Medical Center's two largest grant proposals for a new facility and medical equipment were deferred by the state Rural Health Transformation Program on Wednesday, though five smaller projects advanced to a second funding round.
by Walter AlaskaNews5mo ago2 min read
Petersburg Medical Center employee satisfaction hits 91%
Petersburg Medical Center employee satisfaction rose to 91% in 2026 from 84% in 2024, exceeding national healthcare averages across all measured areas.
by Walter AlaskaNews5mo ago2 min read
Ketchikan Superior Court Judge Katherine Lybrand seeks retention
Ketchikan Superior Court Judge Katherine Lybrand, appointed in 2022, is seeking voter retention in November 2026 after handling criminal, family, and probate cases across the First Judicial District.
by Walter AlaskaNewsadded 5mo ago1 min read