Peninsula Clarion, June 11, 2014

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Special

Game 3

Sharing meals, making memories

Spurs too hot for Miami in Finals

Food/B-1

Sports/A-10

CLARION

Sunny 60/40 More weather on Page A-2

P E N I N S U L A

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 11, 2014 Soldotna-Kenai, Alaska

Vol. 44, Issue 216

Measles cases raise concern

Question How do you deal with mosquitoes? n Bug dope, bug candles, bug coils n Lots of swatting n Just keep moving n Live and let live n Stay inside and lock the windows

Public health officials stress importance of immunizations By KAYLEE OSOWSKI Peninsula Clarion

Tourists this season could bring more than money to the area. With a high number of measles outbreaks in the Lower 48 from Jan. 1 to June 6, Kenai Public Health Center Nurse Manager Charlie Barrows said Alaskans should be aware of the virus, especially during the summer travel season. “We don’t want to frighten people, but with tourist season, people come from all over the place,” Barrows said.

To place your vote and comment, visit our Web site at www. peninsulaclarion. com. Results and selected comments will be posted each Tuesday in the Clarion, and a new question will be asked. Suggested questions may be submitted online or e-mailed to news@peninsulaclarion.com.

Hultberg named to Health Care Commission M

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JUNEAU (AP) — A former commissioner of the state Department of Administration has been appointed to the Alaska Health Care Commission. The appointment of Becky Hultberg was made by Gov. Sean Parnell. Hultberg, who resigned as Administration commissioner late last year, currently serves as a senior vice president of the Alaska State Hospital and Nursing Home Association. Parnell’s office, in a release, says Hultberg’s appointment was to a seat nominated by the association. The commission provides recommendations on a statewide health care policy and on ways to improve Alaskans’ health.

By DAN BALMER Peninsula Clarion

Out for a stroll

‘Investigators are looking into the likelihood that friendly fire was the cause. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of these fallen.’ ... See page A-9

Index Opinion.................. A-4 Nation.................... A-6 World..................... A-8 Sports...................A-10 Food...................... B-1 Classifieds............. B-3 Comics................... B-8

Check us out online at www.peninsulaclarion.com To subscribe, call 283-3584.

Photo by Rashah McChesney/Peninsula Clarion

Mike Sounart walks with his border collie and blue heeler mix Keeta on an unnamed road at the end of Lawton Drive Tuesday in Kenai.

See MEASLES, page A-12

News of a family of four missing from their north Kenai residence for nearly two weeks has been unsettling for residents who described the neighborhood as quiet with transient people who don’t live in the area long. “We don’t know everybody in our building much less buildings down the street,” said Amy Murrell-Haunold, who has lived on California Avenue for five years. “It’s scary. I didn’t expect anything like this to happen.” While authorities have received new information every day during their investigation

into the family’s disappearance, Kenai Police Chief Gus Sandahl said there has been no big break that would lead investigators to search in a specific location. Sandahl said the last physical evidence of a sighting for Rebecca Adams, 22, and her two daughters Michelle Hundley, 5, and Jaracca Hundley, 3, came from video surveillance at a Kenai business on May 18. Adams’ family has disclosed to police phone conversations with Adams around Memorial Day weekend. Also missing is Adams’ boyfriend, 37-year-old Brandon Jividen, and the family dog named Sparks, a brown and white English springer spaniel. See SEARCH, page A-12

Sullivan proposes campaign attack ad pledge By BECKY BOHRER Associated Press

Inside

While Barrows said Alaska hasn’t had a reported measles case since 2000, the state is ranked 39th for immunizations of children 19-35 months old, according to the 2011 National Immunization Survey. “We consistently have geographic areas that are under-immunized often for religious reasons,” Barrows said. “Here, on the Peninsula, we’ve got folks that … claim religious exemption. Where you have more of that religion obviously you’re going to have more kids that might be under-immunized.”

Search continues for missing family

In the news

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JUNEAU — Republican U.S. Senate hopeful Dan Sullivan said Tuesday that he supports the U.S. Supreme Court decision that allowed unlimited spending by unions and corporations in political races even as he proposed a way to curb outside influence in his contest. Sullivan called on Democratic Sen. Mark Begich to sign a pledge asking special interest groups to stop TV and radio ads by July 4 that support or attack their campaigns. If they don’t stop, his pledge says the candidate benefiting from the ads must contribute half the amount of the ad buy to a charity his opponent chooses.

‘It’s about how Mark Begich and I are going to conduct this race.’ — Senate candidate Dan Sullivan Begich spokesman Max Croes called Sullivan’s comments hypocrisy. Campaign manager Susanne Fleek-Green said in a statement that if Sullivan wins his primary, “it will be a stark contrast between his putcorporations-first position and Senator Begich’s support for real campaign finance reform, including support of a constitutional amendment throwing out Citizens United,” the 2010 court ruling. The campaign did not direct-

ly say whether Begich would sign the pledge. There is much at stake in the race — Republicans have focused on Alaska as critical to their efforts to win control of the U.S. Senate. It’s also the state’s first major race in the era of super political action committees. During a conference call with reporters, Sullivan, a former state attorney general, was asked about the Citizens United decision and said he was a

strong supporter of the First Amendment and was not trying to limit free speech with his proposal. S u l l i v a n Mark Begich said in a follow-up call with The Associated Press and in a campaign tweet that he supported the court decision but that his proposal wasn’t about that. “It’s about how Mark Begich and I are going to conduct this race,” Sullivan said. Sullivan singled out Begich for the pledge, modeled on the “People’s Pledge” signed by Republican Scott Brown and Democrat Elizabeth Warren in

the contentious 2012 Massachusetts U.S. Senate race. It helped limit attack ads on the airwaves, but Dan Sullivan groups turned to mass mailings. The race was still the most expensive in Massachusetts’ history. Sullivan still must beat his August primary opponents, including Lt. Gov. Mead Treadwell and Joe Miller, the 2010 GOP Senate nominee in a race that Republican Lisa Murkowski won with a write-in campaign. See PLEDGE, page A-12

FAA approves drone flights By JOAN LOWY Associated Press

WASHINGTON — The Federal Aviation Administration said Tuesday it has granted the first permission for commercial drone flights over land, the latest effort by the agency to show it is loosening restrictions on commercial uses of the unmanned aircraft. Drone maker AeroVironment of Monrovia, California, and BP energy corporation have been given permission to use a Puma drone to survey pipelines, roads and equipment

at Prudhoe Bay in Alaska, the agency said. The first flight took place on Sunday. Made by AeroVironment, the Puma is a small, hand-launched craft about 4 1/2 feet long and with a 9-foot wingspan. It was initially designed for military use. Drones are often less expensive to operate than manned aircraft and easier to maneuver. Equipped with 3D cameras, the Puma will provide images of hard-to-reach places not currently available, BP and AeroVironment say. AeroVironment CEO Tim

Conver said the Puma “is now helping BP manage its extensive Prudhoe Bay field operations in a way that enhances safety, protects the environment, improves productivity and accomplishes activities never before possible.” Last summer, the FAA had approved the Puma and the ScanEagle made by Boeing subsidiary Insitu Inc. of Bingen, Washington, for flights over the AP Photo/BP Alaska Arctic Ocean to scout icebergs, count whales and monitor drill- In this photo taken Saturday and released by BP Alaska, Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) technology using an AeroVironing platforms. “These surveys on Alaska’s ment Puma drone is given a pre-flight checkout in preparation See DRONE, page A-12 for flights by BP at its Prudhoe Bay, Alaska operations. C

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