Tag: ruralcovid

Some buildings next to the water against a hill

COVID-19 outbreak grows at remote Aleutian fish plant

At least 15 people considered at "high-risk" from COVID-19 are being moved by ship to Unalaska, state health officials said. Two more were evacuated to an Anchorage hospital.

COVID-19 closes a third Aleutian plant, stranding Bering Sea fishermen at the dock

In the Aleutian port town of Unalaska, at least five local boats are stuck at the dock with nowhere to deliver their cod after the shutdown of the Alyeska Seafoods processing plant. One has a load of fish worth at least $10,000.
Two crew men shovel a deck full of fish on board a large boat

‘Everybody’s worst nightmare’: Bering Sea fishermen on edge after COVID-19 closes second plant

The winter fishery for Bering Sea pollock, which goes into products like McDonald's fish sandwiches, officially opened Wednesday. But two of the region's largest processors are both shut down
A half dozen officers dressed in black stand around a coffin that is blue

After Y-K Delta tribal police officer dies from COVID-19, flyover gives family final goodbye

David Aqvang Evon was to be buried in Kongiganak, a burial which his family in Akiachak couldn’t attend because of travel restrictions. That forced his family to come up with their own way to say goodbye.
A health worker in a blue gown swabs travelers waiting in line outside the bethel airport

Y-K Delta health corporation recommends regional lockdown for third straight month

The region has recorded the highest COVID-19 rates in the state for months.
a person administers a vaccine to another person

Southwest Alaska villages open vaccinations for general public

Officials say everyone above the age of 16 years old will be eligible for the vaccine, after many people in the region declined to be vaccinated.
A school building

Ketchikan school superintendent on leave after husband’s death from COVID-19

Beth Lougee's husband, David Lougee, a superintendent of a school district in Southwest Alaska, recently died due to COVID-19.
A woman dressed in a white lab coat stands in front of a table. Another woman with protective gear stands in a dooray befhind her.

Project Togo: “Light on the horizon” as Y-K Delta plans first distribution of COVID-19 vaccine

Some priority residents of Y-K Delta villages, which have been hard hit by the coronavirus, will have bear their arms at the airport, likely in freezing conditions, to receive their vaccines.
Goose Creek Prison. Photo by Ellen Lockyer, KSKA - Anchorage.

State Department of Corrections announces third inmate death due to COVID-19

Three people serving time in Alaska's prison system have now died because of COVID-19. Twenty-one inmates are currently hospitalized, and more than 1,000 of the 4,500 people incarcerated in Alaska have tested positive.
An Alaska Native woman rests her arms on a railing.

Here’s what it’s like to be medevaced to Anchorage from rural Alaska with COVID-19

Bethel elder Esther Green was flown 400 miles to Anchorage with COVID-19 and pneumonia. No one from her family was able to accompany her — and they couldn't reach her for more than 14 days afterward.
A white woman with a striped tank top gets a bandaid put on her should

Hope, hesitancy as first vaccine shipments grow near for Alaska

Providers charged with giving the vaccine say they’re eager to use the first doses to protect their front-line workers. But they also say workers are hesitant about being among the first to receive doses on a nationwide scale, and add that the first shipment will do little to ease the current demands of the pandemic.
Icicles hang from a window of an open bus

More Haines residents prepared to evacuate as weather deteriorates

Haines’ high school gym has been converted into an evacuation center. It has enough cots for 50 people in it, but no one has moved in yet.
A fishing boat

During season’s final trip, all but one of Bering Sea trawl crew tests positive for COVID-19

While wrapping up their season fishing for Pacific Ocean perch in the Bering Sea, nearly the entire crew of a United States Seafoods trawler tested positive for COVID-19.
A village

After COVID-19 closes post offices for weeks, Western Alaskans suffer critical mail delays

The post offices in Kwethluk and Pilot Station have been closed for weeks because employees were infected with COVID-19, delaying shipments of essential medicines and supplies.
A community next to the water

Unalaska enters 2-week ‘hunker down’

The order follows two cases of confirmed community spread in the Aleutian community
Unalaska's runway taken from the mountain above, with water on either side

After ‘potential widespread exposure,’ Unalaska closes schools and considers lockdown

City officials confirmed two new COVID-19 cases through community spread on Monday, and said there’s “potential widespread exposure” to the virus in the community.
A dock in a small town filled with skiffs

Unable to reach hospital because of weather, Pilot Station man dies of COVID-19

A 37-year-old man in Pilot Station died from COVID-19 at the village health clinic before he could be transported to a hospital. Stormy conditions prevented a medevac from reaching him.
A beige building with the blue words Alaska Airlines

City of Kotzebue begins mask mandate and new testing requirements

The city is instituting a mandatory mask mandate for anyone who leaves their residence. Violators are subject to a warning, with police issuing fines for subsequent violations.
A red and white building

Y-K health center recommends month-long lockdown for region

The Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta’s health corporation warns that the region’s rising COVID-19 surge could soon overwhelm the local health care system.
An arch in the snow made from giant whale ribs

Utqiagvik passes unique punishment for violators of COVID rules

Rule breakers are required to produce a public service announcement about how to prevent the spread of COVID-19.