Recent News

The number of Alaska post offices being studied for possible closure is down to five – and Douglas is still on the list.

The others are Elmendorf, Fort Wainwright, Eielson and the Anchorage Postal Store. That’s according to a U.S. Postal Service internal study provided to Alaska’s Congressional delegation yesterday (Thursday), and shared with the media.

Originally 36 Alaska post offices were being considered for closure. Twenty-five remote locations were eliminated from consideration almost immediately, and six more came off the list in the last month.

As we reported yesterday (Thursday), three Postal Service officials from Anchorage got an earful from Douglas Post Office customers Wednesday night arguing that the station should stay open.

Alaska District Manager Diane Horbochuk says several factors will determine which offices make the final closure list, including the cost to run each location, access to other post offices, volume, customer demand, and public input.

Communities can appeal if their post office makes the closure list.

Thousands of post offices nationwide are being studied for possible closure by the financially strapped agency, which is facing a 10-billion dollar shortfall.

A preliminary report indicates that rock from an underground blast struck the miner who was killed yesterday (Wednesday) at the Kensington Gold Mine.

The Mine Safety and Health Administration and mine owners Coeur Alaska are investigating the accident and death of 30-year-old Juneau resident Joe Tagaban.

According to MSHA (M-SHAW), Tagaban was working near a previously drilled hole that had not been plugged. The blast sent a concussion of rock through the hole, striking him.

The incident was at the 1260-foot level underground. That section of the mine remains closed while the investigation is underway, according to MSHA spokeswoman Amy Louviere.

“That closure order covers the affected area of the mine where the accident occurred,” Louviere says. “However, it also prevents the mine operator from conducting any blasting in the mine until we’ve determined it’s safe to do so.”

Louviere says investigators from the MSHA Boise office will arrive at Kensington tomorrow to gather evidence from the scene, conduct interviews and piece together an accident timeline.

Meanwhile, services are pending for Tagaban, who had been working as a Kensington underground miner for about a year.

The accident was the first fatality at the Kensington mine, which is about 45 miles northwest of Juneau. In June, a miner was killed at the Fort Knox Gold Mine near Fairbanks, when he fell two stories. He was supposed to be harnessed to a safety line, but was not wearing the harness at the time of the accident.

Eleven-year-old Juneau songstress Anna Graceman failed to advance to the final four on NBC’s America’s Got Talent this week.

Viewers across the country voted for jazz singer Landau Eugene Murphy, Jr. over Graceman on Wednesday. In earlier episodes she’d wowed audiences with her piano playing and outsized singing voice. After the results were announced, Graceman hugged Murphy, and tearfully thanked the crowd.

For her final performance on the show, Graceman performed the song “True Colors” originally recorded by ‘80s pop sensation Cyndi Lauper. It was the first time Graceman had appeared on stage without a keyboard or piano, which seemed to hurt her performance, according to the show’s three judges.

Graceman isn’t the only Alaskan who did well on this season’s America’s Got Talent. Illusionist Landon Swank of Wasilla also made it to the top ten. He too was voted off the show on Wednesday.

Losing the ability to speak clearly is one of the most devastating aspects of having Parkinson’s disease, stroke, or other neurological damage. For years, experts have tried to develop programs to help people with those conditions regain some of their ability to communicate.

One such program is coming to Juneau this weekend. SongShine uses a music-based method to help people reclaim their voices. A free workshop will be held Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at KTOO. Casey Kelly has more.

Juneau residents turned out in force last night (Wednesday) to urge U.S. Postal Service officials NOT to close the Douglas Post Office.

The branch is on a list with thousands of other post offices nationwide being studied for possible closure by the financially struggling agency. But for the approximately 150 people who packed the Mt. Jumbo Gym Wednesday, it’s more than just a place to pick up mail and send packages. It’s a part of the community.

In fact, Douglas Post Office clerks Lee Kearney and Dean Ruby were grand marshals of the Douglas 4th of July parade last year, as pointed out by John Sandor and several others.

“I would be shocked if there’s another post office in the country whose postal workers served as grand marshals,” said Sandor.

Most of those who testified were Douglas residents, who like the convenience of having a post office nearby. But several said they live on the Juneau side of the bridge, but drive to into Douglas rather than use the federal building station downtown. Jack Cadigan gave three reasons why he prefers Douglas.

“Parking, parking and parking,” Cadigan said. “I counted, perhaps incorrectly, but 13 parking spaces 30 minutes each to service the main post office and the entire federal building – all seven stories and all the other agencies that are there. There’s 15 right down here on Douglas. We can come over here with packages, we can bring them in, we can get them shipped, we can get them mailed. And it’s great.”

Edwin Soto, president of the American Postal Workers Union Local 3323 in Juneau, said seniors, people with disabilities, and businesses in Douglas would take the biggest hit if the post office were to close. He argued the Postal Service’s savings would be modest at best, and said the real reason for the agency’s financial problems is a 2006 postal reform law that requires the U.S.P.S. to prefund future retiree health care benefits.

Soto called that “an obligation that no other federal agency or private business must bear.”

Diane Horbochuk, U.S. Postal Service District Manager for Alaska, was one of three Anchorage-based U.S.P.S. officials who heard the testimony. She said public input will be just one of the factors taken into consideration as the agency decides which post offices to shutter. Another factor she mentioned was the cost of running each location. If the Postal Service decides to close the Douglas branch, Horbochuk said there would be an opportunity for the community to appeal.

“At this point we have not made that decision,” stressed Horbochuk. “We’re going to go back and look at all our data, take into account the comments and make a decision. If we do make a decision that goes against what the community feels it should be, then you will be given the notice of what to do for what we would call an appeal. And that would be spelled out and we would post that in the post office.”

The Douglas office is one of 11 in Alaska still on the list for possible closure. The list originally included 36 post offices in the state, but 25 rural locations were spared after community groups voiced concerns.

Earlier this week Postmaster General Patrick Donohoe warned Congress that the Postal Service could lose 10-billion dollars in the fiscal year that closes at the end of this month, and the agency is in danger of defaulting as it reaches its borrowing limit.

Thirty-year-old Joe Tagaban of Juneau is the victim of an underground accident early Wednesday morning at the Kensington Gold Mine.

Coeur Alaska says Tagaban died while performing his regular duties at the mine. The accident happened in an underground stope at the 1260-foot level where Tagaban had been working.

The company is investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident. The Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) has been notified.

Tagaban had worked at the mine for about a year. In a news release, Coeur d’Alene Mines Corporation President and CEO Mitchell J. Krebs said Tagaban was a respected and well-liked employee at Kensington.

“Our collective thoughts and prayers go out to Joe’s family and his co-workers,” he said.

Kensington mine is about 45 miles northwest of Juneau. An emergency response team is stationed at the mine.

Kensington opened in June 2010. This is the first fatality.