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Trump changes story on meeting
Kenai Open wraps up
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CLARION
Rainy 66/53 More weather on Page A2
P E N I N S U L A
Monday, August 6, 2018 Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
Vol. 48, Issue 265
$1 newsstands daily/$1.50 Sunday
Rescuers search for Denali crash site
In the news Construction begins on Chiniak tsunami center KODIAK — Construction has begun on a new tsunami center and library in Chiniak. The Kodiak Daily Mirror reports the new library and tsunami center will replace an emergency shelter, community center and public library that was destroyed in a 2015 wildfire at the same site. The former tsunami center was built in the early 1990s and was one of the only public buildings in the community of nearly 50 residents. It also served as a polling place and public library that provided many residents with internet access. Officials are hoping the building will be completed in time to serve as a polling place for November’s general election. Chiniak is located 40 miles southeast of Kodiak.
By ANDREW SELSKY Associated Press
Peering through low cloud cover, rescuers aboard a military aircraft on Sunday were attempting to find a sightseeing plane that crashed with the pilot and four passengers aboard a day earlier in Alaska, high on a mountain ridge in Denali National Park and Preserve. The pilot reported on his satellite phone Saturday that there were injuries, but authorities couldn’t get details before the satellite connection dropped. Some 20 hours after the de Havilland Beaver plane went down around 6 p.m., the plane is believed to have crashed near the summit of 10,900-foot-high Thunder Mountain, park spokeswoman Katherine Belcher said. There was still no word on the conditions of the pilot and passengers. The tourists, whose identities and nationalities have not been released, and pilot had to spend the night on the mountain. “There’s definitely low cloud cover,” Belcher said in a telephone interview. “We’re waiting for an update from the HC-130 crew that’s up in the air.”
NBA All-Star returns to host Juneau youth basketball camp JUNEAU — A two-time NBA All-Star is returning to his hometown in Alaska to host a weeklong youth basketball camp. The Juneau Empire reports 36-year-old Carlos Boozer is holding his second camp that begins Monday at Juneau-Douglas High School, where Boozer graduated from in 1999. The retired professional basketball star was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2002. He also played for the Utah Jazz, Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Lakers over his 13-year career. Boozer says he’s looking forward to giving back to the community and teaching “some of the stuff I learned along the way on my basketball journey.” Juneau-Douglas basketball coach Robert Casperson, who was a high school teammate of Boozer, says about 150 children attended the camp last year, and he expects more this year. — Associated Press
Index Opinion................... A4 Nation..................... A5 World...................... A6 Sports......................A7 Classifieds.............. A9 Comics.................. A12
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Feeling Groovy
See CRASH, page A2
Crowds turn out for the 2018 Salmonfest in Ninilchik People from across the Peninsula celebrated three days of fish, love and music over the weekend at the eighth-annual Salmonfest in Ninilchik. Hosted at the Kenai Peninsula Fairgrounds on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, the music festival featured performances, art installations, workshops, camping and food vendors. (Photos by Megan Pacer/Homer News)
Forest Service releases draft of Chugach land management plan By ELIZABETH EARL Peninsula Clarion
The U.S. Forest Service is moving into the next phase of rewriting its plan for the Chugach National Forest and is seeking public input. The plan provides a framework for how the government manages the Chugach National Forest, which covers the eastern half of the Kenai Peninsula, Prince William Sound and the Copper River Delta. Most of the population of Alaska lives
within a two-hour drive of the forest. The Forest Service has been reevaluating the document, which was enacted in 2002, since 2012 and on Friday released the draft Land Management Plan and draft Environmental Impact Statement. The new version includes a climate change assessment and consideration of the changes local and regional economy, physical condition of the forest and increased recreational use, among other details.
“The Chugach National Forest is the backyard to over half of Alaska’s population, supporting businesses and rural communities with world-class tourism opportunities and destinations,” said Terri Marceron, Forest Supervisor, in a Friday press release. “The draft Land Management Plan for the Chugach National Forest continues our commitment to connect and deliver forest resources and benefits to people.” Part of the plan revision will be to change some of the man-
agement areas within the forest as well. The Draft Environmental Impact Statement evaluates four alternatives, each with specific reclassifications for different areas. Some of the proposals raised controversy during previous public meetings, as the Forest Service has suggested designating some areas a wilderness or primitive recreation. The Forest Service has to revise the plan every 10 years and need to consider new inSee LAND, page A2
Skagway tour company faced allegations of unsafe practices before fatal canoe accident HAINES (AP) — The operator of a canoe that recently capsized in a swift moving river in southeast Alaska, killing one man, has been identified as a company with a history of allegations. Prior to the Monday death, the Skagway-based Alaska Excursions faced public scrutiny earlier this year after former employees claimed the company has unsafe tour practices and poor maintenance habits, the Chilkat Valley News reported . Nevada pastor Steven Todd Willis was in Alaska celebrat-
ing his wedding anniversary when he died after the canoe rolled in the Davidson Glacier River. The river’s water level on the day of the incident appeared to be higher than normal, according to an Alaska State Trooper dispatch. “It appeared the engine didn’t start immediately when they got into the rapid water and were overcome by the current,” Alaska State Trooper spokesperson Tim DeSpain said. “(The canoe) overturned in high water not long after it was launched from the head of
the river.” All of the passengers who fell into the water, including Willis, were wearing life jackets. Alaska Excursions owner Robert Murphy issued a statement this week offering condolences to everyone involved in the incident. Willis’ death comes months after 10 former employees of the tour company publicly criticized it when it applied for a new commercial ATV tour permit with the Haines Borough. Former manager Sam Edwards and other guides wrote
to the borough assembly, informing it of the company’s negligence in maintaining skiffs used to transport guides to and from Glacier Point. “The maintenance on the skiffs, busses, ATVs, and canoe motors was extremely spotty and it was often very hard to get a mechanic to come out, even when we were on the verge of not being able to run the trip,” Other guides claimed they were pressured make trips during unsafe weather. Murphy and other employees disputed the group’s claims.
Kodiak to pay $265K to autistic man in lawsuit settlement KODIAK (AP) — Kodiak officials have agreed to pay $265,000 to an autistic man who was forcibly detained and pepper-sprayed by police. The city is settling the lawsuit filed in February 2016 by the guardians of 30-year-old Nicholas Pletnikoff, who said police were negligent and used excessive force, the Kodiak Daily Mirror reported Friday. Pletnikoff was apprehended in September 2015 after Kodiak officers responded to a 911 call from tourists, saying that a man was attempting to break into their rental car. Pletnikoff had “approached an occupied, parked vehicle, reached into the vehicle and attempted to take some papers from it,” an attorney for the city wrote in court filings. He grabbed an envelope inside the car and “would not listen” after being told to stop, the outof-state visitors told police. Police body-camera footage shows the officers taking Pletnikoff to the ground and struggling to handcuff him, leading to an officer using pepper spray on Pletnikoff at close range. Pletnikoff is interested in cars, and neighbors are accustomed to him sometimes reaching into cars to adjust sun visors, according to the lawsuit. See SUIT, page A2