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KNOM Update News
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Top News
Profiles
Carol Seppilu: Running for Your Life and Hers
Within the last ten years, Seppilu has been actively running all over the Nome area. She loves to run, but she also runs for another purpose: to promote suicide prevention efforts
KNOM’s Tribute to Former Mayor Beneville
Nome Mayor James “Richard” Beneville reflects on a life of service in Western Alaska. In the fall of 2019 Richard sat down with KNOM to share his wisdom in this final interview.
Gambell Seamstress Keeps Knowledge of Traditional Siberian Yupik Sewing Alive
Published by Lydia Apatiki of Gambell, with support from Kawerak Inc., “Sivuqam Kelugwi: A St. Lawrence Island Traditional Sewing Curriculum” uses a symbiosis of technology and traditional knowledge to revitalize a forgotten art.
Public Safety
Results From 2019 Audit of Nome Police Not Yet Released, No Reason Given for Delay
Russell Consulting LLC visited Nome on November 5th, 2019 to externally review policing procedures, evidence collection, and other issues. Nearly ten months later, nothing from the audit has materialized.
Stebbins Teacher Arrested for Explicit Messages Had License Previously Revoked for Other Offenses in Oregon
65-year-old Lon Dean Gillas allegedly used his Bering Strait School District Google account to discuss sex and ask for explicit photos from a minor. The underage girl did not live in Alaska.
Department of Public Safety Asks for Community Help With Domestic Violence
The Department of Public Safety is reminding Western Alaskans that they have resources to get help following reports of domestic violence related incidents that resulted in the death of five people in late June.
COVID-19
Traveler Tests Positive for COVID-19 Upon Arrival Into Nome, Fifth Non-Resident Case
The Norton Sound Region has now recorded 25 positive cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. The newest case is a non-resident of the region who tested positive in Nome yesterday.
24th COVID-19 Case for Norton Sound Region a Non-Resident in Stebbins
Norton Sound Health Corporation says this will likely be a travel-related case. According to a statement from NSHC, the individual’s positive test came up as a result of Stebbins’ quarantine and testing requirements.
COVID-19 Restrictions Spark Food Security Concerns in Western Alaska
Western Alaska communities have been restricting inter-village travel to control the spread of the coronavirus, but in communities like Stebbins, that also makes it harder to get basic groceries.
Environment & Climate
IPOP Proposes “Complex” Gold Mining Project Within Bonanza Channel Near Nome
IPOP LLC, the mining company associated with Rivers of Gold, has applied for a permit to mine gold using a 36-inch cutterhead dredge in the Safety Sound, about 25 miles east of Nome.
Cod Tagging Project Suggests Fish Don’t Overwinter in Northern Bering Sea
Susanne McDermott, a fish biologist with NOAA Fisheries, says that after tagging 38 cod last year, none of them stayed under the ice in the Northern Bering Sea over the winter.
Mystery Of Dying Seabirds: More Starving Birds Found in Bering Strait Region for Fourth Consecutive Year
Reports of dead seabirds found on the shores of Western Alaska are being documented again this summer. If numbers continue to rise, this would mark the fourth year in a row the Bering Strait region has seen a seabird die-off.