Avalanche shuts down Seward Highway
An avalanche shut down the Seward Highway on Friday, March 27 for approximately four hours. Girdwood Fire Chief Bill Chadwick said it was a very large avalanche that struck around 12:30 p.m. at mileposts 86 and 87 just south of Girdwood. Local DOT personnel responded, clearing the road around 4:30 p.m.
Avalanche Partially Buries Freight Train:
Train Crew Safe and No Hazardous Materials Onboard
An avalanche hit an Alaska Railroad Corporation (ARRC) freight train early Thursday, March 26 near ARRC milepost 49.5, approximately 15-20 miles south of Portage. The three-man crew was not injured but a number of rail cars were buried. The train was carrying lumber, sheet rock and other building materials. No hazardous materials were being transported.
Comprised of 64 rail cars and three locomotives, the northbound freight train left Seward, headed for Anchorage, on Wednesday night. The train crew initiated an emergency stopping procedure around 11:30 p.m. The crew unhooked the locomotives from the rail cars and attempted to proceed north towards Anchorage, but an avalanche halted their progress. Maintenance crews were dispatched to clear the snow and the train crew was retrieved unharmed from the scene. An aerial inspection on Thursday showed the avalanche buried at least 10 of the stopped rail cars. The locomotives and the remaining rail cars were not hit by the avalanche but heavy blanketed the area.
Avalanche and snow crews worked Thursday and into Friday to mitigate further avalanche activity and to clear existing slide zones. Once weather improved, crews removed moveable railcars once the area had been assessed and deemed safe for train movement.
President signs omnibus public lands management act: Kenai Mountains-Turnagain Arm National Heritage Area included in bill
On Monday, March 29, U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska attended the White House ceremony of President Obama’s signing of the Omnibus Public Lands Management Act of 2009 (H.R. 146).
“This legislation preserves important public lands for future generations without unnecessarily blocking our ability to tap our natural resources,” Murkowski said. “It’s a good example of how we in Congress can find success through hard work and bipartisanship.”
The package, which Murkowski championed and helped guide through the Senate, designates more than 2 million acres of wilderness in nine states and more than 1,000 miles of national wild and scenic rivers. The bipartisan bill, which was supported by a broad coalition of sportsmen and outdoor groups, contains more than 160 public lands bills, including several provisions of significance to Alaska.
“This package is hugely beneficial to individual communities, especially in western states where the federal government owns so much of the land,” Murkowski said.
Murkowski helped add language to the package protecting access to hunting, fishing, trapping and recreational shooting on public lands. The language also reaffirms the right of states to manage fish and wildlife populations, as well as hunting, trapping and fishing activities on public lands.
Among the Alaska provisions in the package was one allowing for the establishment of a Kenai Mountains-Turnagain Arm National Heritage Area to promote local tourism. The provision would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to provide $1 million a year, for a maximum of $10 million over 15 years, to promote tourism of the Kenai Fjords National Park and Turnagain Arm.
The wilderness bill had been voted down by the House of Representatives March 11, but was brought back to life for another vote March 25 after language was added reaffirming the right to hunt, fish and trap on public lands and the states’ rights to manage those activities. That deal allowed Senate leader Harry Reid to repackage the bill as HR146 and send it back to the House.
On March 25, the bill easily passed in the House 285-140.
GCVA Art Swap: A great chance to get rid of or find new art
Many of us are starting to think—spring cleaning. With that sun coming in our windows again we can’t help but become a little motivated to spruce things up, the Girdwood Center for Visual Arts is here to help. Our annual Art Swap is coming up and we are looking for artwork. If you have some art that you are tired of or if you never really loved the Picasso you got for your anniversary bring it on it to the gallery. The swap show is a great opportunity to get great art at a reduced rate or simply thin out some wonderful art that has been stored under the bed.
The GCVA will give the seller 90 percent of the sale with the rest going to support the gallery. Items should be delivered to the GCVA no later than Sunday, April 5 at 5:00 p.m. Art Swap will run April 8 through May 3, 2009. Items not sold will be the seller’s responsibility to pick-up. The GCVA hours are 10:00 am-5:00 pm Wednesday - Sunday.
We hope to see you at the swap! For more information call 783-3209.