Developments in the case of a King Cove couple who died earlier this year point to homicide, according to the death certificate of James Gould, released in early May. He and his wife, Kathryn, died in a house fire in their Anchorage home this winter. The fire is being investigated as arson.
According to their death certificates, the 75-year old victims died from smoke inhalation and thermal burns.
James and Kathryn Gould owned John Gould & Sons, a general store that first opened in King Cove in 1939. The couple spent most of their life in the small fishing community near the tip of the Alaska Peninsula, but were living in Anchorage at the time of their deaths.
The couple’s niece, Amy Carlough, said she hopes pending investigations will bring the community closure.
“Now that both deaths have been officially ruled as homicides…our family will be working with law enforcement to spearhead necessary justice for them and the communities they loved to call ‘home,’” Carlough said.
James and Kathryn are buried in King Cove Cemetery. Their memorial service was held in February.
Anyone with information related to the deaths can contact the Anchorage Police Department and reference APD case 24-3563.
“We told them that we are fishing communities,” said Osterback. “We don’t do anything else. We don’t have anything else. Every business in our communities depends on the fisheries.”
KUCB / Andy Lusk
The mayors of Unalaska and the Aleutians East Borough traveled to Washington, D.C. last month, sounding the alarm on the challenges jeopardizing Alaska’s fisheries.
Unalaska Mayor Vince Tutiakoff Sr. and Aleutians East Borough Mayor Alvin Osterback attended an invite-only conference May 22 and 23 in the nation’s capital. There, they filled state and federal officials in on the severity of the fishing industry crash and its impact on rural communities.
“Right now they have a crisis going on in King Cove,” Tutiakoff said during an Unalaska City Council meeting in late May, referencing the recent closure of Peter Pan — King Cove’s main economic driver. “They will not have a processing plant and they will not have a salmon season. They don’t have a crab season. They’re in real dire need.”
The closure of Peter Pan and sell-offs within Trident have sent shock waves through coastal towns who rely on the fishing industry.
Tutiakoff said federal officials he spoke with were interested in the issue but weren’t aware of the whole situation.
“My comments to the Secretary of Commerce were that we need help,” he said. “We need it soon. Unlike some communities, we do have some revenues but it’s not going to carry us very long before we start to feel the impact.”
Tutiakoff said the main issue brought forward at the meeting was that Alaska’s fish can’t compete with loopholes in global markets. He said Russian-caught fish is being transferred to countries like China and then sold on the American market as an Alaska product.
He called for federal officials to close loopholes that benefit the Russian fishing industry, warning that if help didn’t come soon, “Russian fish will be on everybody’s plate.”
Osterback agreed with Tutiakoff, emphasizing the region’s reliance on the success of its fisheries.
“We told them that we are fishing communities,” said Osterback. “We don’t do anything else. We don’t have anything else. Every business in our communities depends on the fisheries.”
Osterback noted that Sen. Dan Sullivan is working to add fisheries into renewal of the Farm Bill, a set of programs that support American agriculture. Including fisheries in the bill could insulate the industry from fluctuating markets.
“Whether you’re growing crops on land or you’re harvesting in the sea, you’re still a harvester,” Osterback said. “The fishermen, the municipalities, the processors — we’re all tied together pretty tight. If one fails, we all fail.”
Sens. Sullivan and Lisa Murkowski are expected to present a strategic plan to the Secretary of Commerce this summer.
Trident Seafoods sent shock waves through the fishing industry when it announced in December it was selling several of its plants around the state — that after delaying construction of its new, flagship facility in Dutch Harbor by at least a year.
Trident CEO Joe Bundrant called the current restructuring decisions “the most difficult” decisions of his career.
Fishermen-owned Silver Bay already operates a facility in False Pass, just next to the Trident plant. Silver Bay President and CEO Cora Campbell said owning adjacent facilities would make operations more efficient, and allow them to provide more opportunities to the fleet.
Silver Bay said it will also be able to provide fuel services with the new facility.
Alaska’s fisheries are facing an unprecedented crisis. A flood of foreign fish into the market, coupled with inflation and trade sanctions, have led to a massive drop in the market value of Alaska’s fish — and coastal communities are feeling the squeeze.
Peter Pan Seafoods made the last minute decision in January not to open their King Cove facility for A season, and then announced in April they wouldn’t open at all, selling some of their plants in other parts of the state, leaving King Cove without its economic driver.
ADFG’s South Alaska Peninsula Salmon pre-season stakeholders meeting will happen via M$ Teams videoconference: Thursday, May 30th, 2024 at 10AM
“Annual ADFG Preseason meeting for fishermen. Video conferencing will be available at AEB offices in Sand Point, King Cove, Nelson Lagoon and False Pass. Otherwise fishermen can use the phone number to call in directly or from the harbor houses. They will need to dial the number below and enter the passcode.”
Meeting ID: 279 844 469 514
Dial-in by phone
+1 323-433-2327,,678885963# United States, Los Angeles
(833) 779-6874,,678885963# United States (Toll-free)
Phone conference ID: 678 885 963#
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration has announced the availability of the Environmental Assessment for the AU Aleutians II Fiber Project by Unicom, Inc., a subsidiary of GCI. This project proposes to bring fast internet service to Ouzinkie, Port Lions, Chignik Lagoon, Chignik Lake, Cold Bay, and False Pass, through installation of subsea fiber optic cable and local access networks. The Environmental Assessment describes the anticipated environmental effects of the project and can be accessed online via a link on this radio station’s website. Written comments must be received by 5:00 PM on May 25, 2024.
Join The Aleut Corp. and Copper Bay Resources for a fun night of dinner, door prizes and info on Pyramid & San Diego Bay Projects, job opportunities and the upcoming field season. Discussion and Q&A session to follow. Food & refreshments provided. We hope to see you there!
* Hear from the project team about the 2024 field season
* Learn about the project’s future plans and job opportunities
* Connect with members of the project team
MONDAY MAY 20TH @ 5:30 PM
QTT COMMUNITY CENTER
QUESTIONS? CONTACT SEAN SOLIE 1-907-687-1184 COPPERBAYRESOURCES.COM
Legendary aviator Orin Seybert, perhaps best known as the founder of regional airline Peninsula Airways, died of natural causes Friday morning in Anchorage at the age of 87.
Seybert started the airline in 1955, just after graduating high school in the Southwest Alaska town of Pilot Point.
“The first year after high school, I brought an airplane to Pilot Point in Bristol Bay,” Seybert told KUCB in 1999. “I spent my whole career flying up and down the chain and Bristol Bay.”
Seybert led PenAir to become the largest regional airline in Alaska, operating more than 30 aircraft in 45 communities.
Seybert was perhaps best known in Unalaska for recognizing the amphibious Grumman Goose’s potential for operating along the steep coastlines of the Aleutian Islands, where coastal communities built below mountainous terrain pose particular difficulties for constructing runways.
“It’s a flying boat. The hull is actually a boat, as opposed to a float plane…so this thing can handle the rough water around Dutch Harbor,” Seybert said. “We have communities like Akutan, 40 miles from here, which is extremely mountainous, and they’ll never be able to build a runway there.”
Seybert is survived by six children and over 50 grandchildren, great grandchildren, and great-great grandchildren.
‘Big Wave’ Dave Dillard spoke with Mary Miner (Vice President, Community Development for Alaska Growth Capital) & Julie Toomey (Vice President of Regional Affairs for The Aleut Corporation) on KSDP about the Aleut Shareholder Marketplace Competition at Noon on Friday, April 19th, 2024.
To enter the competition & learn more, please visit: https://www.alaskagrowth.com/aleut-shareholder-marketplace/
“McKinley Alaska Growth Capital (MAGC), in partnership with The Aleut Corporation, proudly administers the Aleut Shareholder Marketplace Business Plan Competition to support vibrant Aleut communities. Open exclusively to Aleut Shareholders and descendants of Shareholders, this business plan competition improves the economic opportunities available to Shareholders by providing technical and financial support to small businesses to encourage adaptive, entrepreneurial activity in the Aleutians and across Alaska.”
Key 2024 Dates:
April 15 – Business Concept Application opens
May 22 – Business Concept Application submission deadline
August 5 – 9 – Business Boot Camp in Anchorage (travel day, 3-day Boot Camp, travel day)
November 6 – Final Business Plan submission deadline
February, date TBD – Winners announced
Peter Pan Seafood Co., the state-backed processing company that has faced dire financial troubles recently, announced Friday it was ceasing operations.
“We’re saddened to share that Peter Pan Seafoods will be halting operations at its processing plants, leading to the discontinuation of both summer and winter production cycles for the foreseeable future,” the company said in a Facebook post Friday night.
The company faced mounting troubles, including legal claims from fishermen claiming back-owed payments for unpaid deliveries of seafood.
Silver Bay Seafoods recently announced it would acquire Peter Pan’s Valdez facility, as well as operate Peter Pan’s facilities in Dillingham and Port Moller during the 2024 salmon season. It never specified, however, if the King Cove plant would be included.
“This is so sad because I [worked up in King Cove] from ‘96 through last summer,” one commenter posted. “I have good memories from King Cove and the plant, have my kids in the school for a few years.”
King Cove, a community of around 800 residents, relies on the processing facility as its main economic engine. The city already faced hardship when Peter Pan opted last minute not to open for winter’s “A” season, forcing local fishing boats to scramble for new facilities where they could deliver their catch.
“Thanks for waiting until the last possible minute before you told the community of King Cove,” another person commented. “Wouldn’t even tell the fishing fleet of King Cove face to face what was happening, we all have to find out on Facebook.”
Great News……the Logo Contest deadline has been moved to Monday, May 6th at Noon!!! There is still time to get those logos submitted. Already submitted one???? Then make TWO!!
We appreciate those logos already submitted and can’t wait to see if any more get entered!!
“With an increase in measles cases in the lower 48, now is a great time to make sure your family is up to date on protection against measles. Measles can be prevented with the MMR vaccine, and every child 1 year or older is eligible. Learn how to check your family immunization records and find locations to get vaccinated at vaccinate.alaska.gov. This message brought to you by the Alaska Department of Health.”
