Pets!
Champs
Several animals up for adoption
Brewers, Dodgers take divisions
Pets/A9
Sports/A5
CLARION
Morning shower 56/42 More weather on Page A2
P E N I N S U L A
Vol. 49, Issue 2
In the news Bear, cubs kill an Alaska worker at remote silver mine JUNEAU (AP) — A female bear and her two cubs mauled and killed a young man working at a remote mine site on a southeast Alaska island with one of the highest bear densities in the state, authorities said Monday. Anthony David Montoya, 18, a contract worker from Hollis, Oklahoma, died at a remote drill site accessible only by helicopter, according to Hecla Greens Creek Mine and authorities. Mine officials said workers receive training on how to deal with bears because of the large number in the area. Alaska State Troopers said Montoya was mauled by the three bears, all of which were killed before they arrived. It was not immediately clear who killed them. Montoya worked for Idaho-based Timberline Drilling, which provides core drilling services at Greens Creek, the mine said in a release. His body was being taken to the state medical examiner’s office for an autopsy. The silver mine is on Admiralty Island, which is about 18 miles (29 kilometers) southwest of Juneau and where an estimated 1,500 brown bears roam, said Stephen Bethune, a biologist with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Tours to the island that’s largely uninhabited by people tout bear-viewing possibilities. The island also has the world’s highest density of nesting bald eagles, according to the department. Its only permanent community is Angoon, which is accessible by plane or ferry. However, run-ins with bears on Admiralty Island are fairly unusual, Bethune said, noting there was a nonfatal attack within the past three years. Mike Satre, manager of government and community relations with the mine, said employees and contractors receive training on bears. Workers are taught, for example, ways to prevent bear encounters, including proper disposal of food. Bear spray is available to carry between buildings and trained personnel use bean bags to scare away bears from established areas. The mine also has videos on bear behavior. In remote locations, bear spray is among the tools employees generally bring with them in the case of bear encounters, Satre said.
Index Opinion................... A4 Sports......................A5 Classifieds.............. A6 Comics.................... A8 Check us out online at www.peninsulaclarion.com To subscribe, call 283-3584.
Tuesday, October 2, 2018 Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
$1 newsstands daily/$1.50 Sunday
Props Borough Elections: Before you go would change hospital service area Today borough residents have the opportunity to elect new leadership in the Kenai Peninsula Borough Regular Municipal Election.
Polls will be open from 7 a.m. - 8 p.m. For the central peninsula, the ballot will hold elections for Borough Assembly, Board of Education, Kenai City Council, Soldotna City Council, service area board candidates and borough ballot propositions. Borough Assembly Candidates
By MICHAEL ARMSTRONG Homer News
Two propositions on the Oct. 2 Kenai Peninsula Borough ballot will be considered separately by voters in the Central Peninsula Hospital Service Area and the South Kenai Peninsula Hospital Service Area. Though distinct propositions, the questions literally meet in the middle, and depending on the results, can affect residents in both areas. Proposition 2 asks voters in the central peninsula and those in a proposed expanded area if they want to extend the CPH Service Area boundary moved about 15 miles south to Barbara Drive in Ninilchik. A “yes” vote accepts the change and a “no” vote keeps the service areas as they are. Proposition 3 asks voters in the south peninsula and those in a proposed expanded area across Kachemak Bay if they want to extend the SPH Service Area boundary to include the land south of Kachemak Bay, but excluding the city of Seldovia. A “yes” vote accepts the change and a “no” vote keeps the service areas as they are. Four results could happen: both propositions pass, both fail, Prop 2 only passes or Prop 3 only passes. If both propositions pass, most residents will see a drop in property taxes. The central peninsula service area would become larger by moving south, and so would the service area for South Peninsula Hospital. See PROP, page A3
District 1 (Kalifornsky) Brent Hibbert District 6 (Seward, Hope, Moose Kenn Carpenter Pass, Cooper Landing & North Sterling) District 9 (South Peninsula) Willy Dunne & Troy Jones Board of Education Candidates District 2 (Kenai) Matthew Morse & Tim Navarre District 5 (Sterling/Funny River) Karyn Griffin, Greg Madden, Marty Anderson & Nissa Fowler District 8 (Homer) Mike Illg Joint Operations Board for Central Peninsula Emergency Medical & Central Emergency Candidates Seat C: Ryan Kapp Seat D: Leslie Morton Nikiski Fire Service Area Candidates Seat F: Todd Paxton & Peter Ribbens Seat G: Amber Olivia-Douglas Nikiski Senior Service Area Candidates Seat A: Lacey Lyn Stock North Peninsula Recreation Service Area Candidates Seat C: Felix Martinez II Seat D: Sasha Fallon Kenai City Council Candidates For two seats: Robert Peterkin II, Bob Molloy, & Teea Winger Soldotna City Council Candidates Seat A: Paul Whitney Seat C: Jordan Chilson Seat F: Justin Ruffridge
Anchor Point Central
Funny River No. 1 Funny River No. 2 Kasilof
K Beach Kenai No. 1 Kenai No. 2 Kenai No. 3 Mackey lake Nikiski Ninilchik Salamatof Soldotna Sterling No. 1 & No. 2
Precinct Polling Places Anchor Point Senior Center Mile .25 Milo Fritz Road Soldotna Sports Center 538 Arena Drive
Funny River Community Center 35850 Pioneer Access Road Kenai Peninsula Borough Admin building, Assembly Chambers 491 E. Pioneer Ave. Kasilof Fire Station 58260 Sterling Highway K-Beach Fire Station 37699 K-Beach Drive Kenai Mall 11312 Kenai Spur Highway Challenger Learning Center 9711 Kenai Spur Highway Kenai Senior Center 361 Senior Court Kenai Peninsula Borough Admin Building, Assembly Chambers 144 N. Binkley St. Nikiski Community Center 50097 Kenai Spur Highway Kenai Peninsula Fairgrounds 16200 Sterling Highway Niksiki Fire Station No. 1 Mile 17.9 Kenai Spur Highway Soldotna City Hall 177 N. Birch St. Sterling Community Center 35040 Sterling Highway
Kenai, Soldotna boost cybersecurity By VICTORIA PETERSEN Peninsula Clarion
The cities of Soldotna and Kenai have boosted security on their entity’s digital infrastructure after a detrimental attack affected the Matanuska-Susitna Borough network earlier this summer. The Mat-Su Borough is still reeling from the damage of a malware attack discovered July 31. The borough’s entire network, 150 servers, 500 workstations, and computers had to be rebuilt and restored. Borough services are slowly coming back online, with the most essential services being restored at the end of September, and into the first week of October, according to a Sept. 30 update from the Mat-Su Borough. To prevent such an attack on
city networks, both Soldotna and Kenai are including more training for their employees. In the wake of the Mat-Su malware attack, Kenai is now requiring their employees to take part in additional training that includes fake phishing emails and other scenarios for employees to be aware of, city manager Paul Ostrander said. “You’re never 100 percent secure,” Ostrander said. “You prepare as well as you can. Training our employees is part of that.” In Soldotna, city manager Stephanie Queen said the city does several things to protect IT infrastructure against cyber attacks, including an employee training. “Phishing emails are particularly common, and hackSee CYBER, page A3
A workers sits a computer at the Department of Homeland Security’s National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center (NCCIC) in Arlington, Va., Wednesday, Aug. 22, 2018. The center serves as the hub for the federal government’s cyber situational awareness, incident response, and management center for any malicious cyber activity. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)
State wants lawsuit Sarah Palin’s son, Track, accused of hitting woman challenging bonding proposal dismissed
By RACHEL D’ORO Associated Press
ANCHORAGE — Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin’s oldest son, Track, hit a woman in the head after telling her that she couldn’t leave his house and resisted as authorities arrested him, court documents said. Track Palin, 29, is in jail facing misdemeanor charges including assault, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct less than a year after being accused of attacking his father at his parents’ home. A female acquaintance said Palin blocked the doorway when she tried to leave his house in the city of Wasilla on Friday night, according to an affidavit written by Alaska State Trooper Jason Somerville. She told authorities that he took her phone when she said she would call the police if she didn’t let her leave. She said she made it to her car in the driveway but that Pal-
BECK BOHRER Associated Press
This Sept. 3, 2008, file photo shows Track Palin, son of Sarah Palin during the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minn. Authorities say the former Alaska governor’s oldest son has been arrested again on suspicion of assault. (AP Photo/ Charles Rex Arbogast, File)
in followed her and “was on top phone and he let her leave afof her, hitting her in the head,” ter she screamed for help, the the document said. affidavit said. Her arm had They wrestled over the See TRACK, page A3
JUNEAU — A judge said Monday he wants both sides to submit additional briefs before deciding whether to dismiss a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Gov. Bill Walker’s plan to pay Alaska’s oil and gas tax credit obligations. The state wants the case brought by Juneau resident Eric Forrer to be dismissed. Superior Court Judge Jude Pate said a decision probably would not be made until early November. The Legislature earlier this year passed a bill, proposed by Walker, to establish a new state corporation that would be empowered to sell up to $1 billion in bonds to pay off the state’s remaining tax credit obligations. Lawmakers had previously voted to end the tax credit program,
which had been geared toward small producers and developers, because they said it had become unaffordable. How much to put toward paying down the obligation had, in recent years, become a political fight. The state constitution limits the power to incur state debt. But Attorney General Jahna Lindemuth has said that her office is confident the proposed bonds would be lawful. She said the proposed bonds would not be considered state debt subject to the constitutional restraints. The proposed bonds would be “subject-to-appropriation” bonds, she wrote, meaning that payment of the bonds would be contingent upon whether the legislature sets aside money for them each year. The state has pointed to See BOND, page A2