Robert Woolsey, KCAW - Sitka
Robert Woolsey is a reporter at KCAW in Sitka.
Sitka man takes plea deal in murder of girlfriend; will serve 45 years
A Sitka man accused of killing his girlfriend last year has taken a plea deal, and now could face up to 45 years in prison. Listen now
‘Small’ king has big lead in 63rd Sitka Salmon Derby
After three days of fishing, a 31-pound 6-ounce chinook leads the Sitka Salmon Derby. Listen now
For this expat mom, raising healthy girls means going to prison
After fleeing an abusive relationship with her two girls, a Sitka woman is in prison, pending extradition to the United Kingdom, to face charges that she abducted her children to the United States. Listen now
Air Station Sitka: An airborne mission over Alaska’s maritime landscape
Air Station Sitka commander Capt. Chip Lewin discussed the capabilities of his crews and their equipment in a presentation to the Sitka Chamber of Commerce. Listen now
As speculation continues, Sitka finds wealth in water rights
Although Sitka’s dreams of selling bulk water on the world market haven’t amounted to anything, the community has made quite a bit of cash not selling water. Listen now
Chinook action plan a ‘question mark’ for conservation and economics
There will be a lot less fishing for king salmon in Southeast in the coming season, after the Alaska Board of Fisheries took dramatic steps to protect dwindling chinook returns to the region’s major river systems.
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Trollers call for chinook management ‘with a scalpel, not a sledgehammer’
Fishermen in Sitka are pushing back against a proposed king salmon conservation plan that could impose deep restrictions on fishing seasons in 2018. Listen now
Test results point to achievement gaps among Sitka’s students
Based on the latest test scores, Sitka’s school district is performing above the state average — but the numbers are not necessarily something to brag about. Instead, Sitka’s educators hope the new test results help them focus their efforts on under-performing populations in the schools. Listen now
Herb Didrickson 1926-2017: Alaska’s ‘Jim Thorpe’ put family before fame
Sitkan Herb Didrickson died on September 25. In 2012 the 91-year-old Tlingit elder was inducted into the Alaska Sports Hall of Fame, which called him the “Jim Thorpe” of Alaska, and the greatest athlete ever produced in the state. Listen now
No injuries in Sitka Labor Day landslide
A landslide in Sitka early Monday afternoon stranded people on either end of the road system for about eight hours, but otherwise there no reports of damage or injuries. Listen now
Never mind the rain, Sitkans take to the skies to view eclipse
While millions of Americans went out of their way to travel somewhere to watch Monday’s eclipse for a few minutes, a few people took to the skies to watch it for hours. Listen now
Fish and Game to shut down Southeast commercial and sport king fishing
The Alaska Department of Fish & Game is shutting down all commercial and sport fishing for king salmon in Southeast Alaska. Listen now
Troopers shoot bear after it kills, eats a dog in a Sitka neighborhood
Wildlife troopers in Sitka shot and killed a brown bear Friday afternoon after it killed and partially consumed a resident’s dog. Listen now
Ecosystem study unlocks the mystery of black cod survival
Although stocks are strong, biologists don’t fully grasp black cod population ecology. A research partnership in Sitka hopes to change that. Listen now
Deep-release puts the pressure on rockfish survival
For sport anglers in Southeast Alaska having a slow day trying for salmon or halibut this August there will be no “plan B” for bottom-dwelling rockfish. Listen now
In Sitka: A mobile plant built to chill out the Bristol Bay fishery
Alaska’s Bristol Bay sockeye fishery is intense, lucrative — and also remote. Much of the fish landed there is frozen whole and shipped long distances for secondary processing. Although the product is famous, there are some who think the quality could be improved. In Sitka, a pair of entrepreneurs is betting $2 million that they can deliver a better Bristol Bay sockeye. Meet Northline Seafoods. Listen now
A ‘funnybug’ holds a serious clue to Ice Age ecology
Late last month a retired scientist from Oregon stepped off the ferry in Sitka, and on a hunch decided to look around the woods for an old friend. And while his discovery sheds light on one of the more obscure corners of entomology, it also is a clue to how humans may have survived the Ice Age in North America. Listen now
SEARHC land transfer advances in congressional committees
A bill transferring over 19 acres of federal land in Sitka to the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium — or SEARHC — has passed preliminary committees in both the US House and Senate. Listen now
‘Woman with small shovel’ finds a clue to Sitka’s paleo past
A sewer replacement project in Sitka has turned up more evidence that one of Alaska’s oldest cities has been inhabited for a long, long time.
CEO: Possible Sitka Community Hospital merger raises ‘complexity’ of hospital’s challenges
Sitka Community Hospital is operating in the black for the first time in several years, but its future is far from certain. Listen now