Bethel

There was a plane crash Monday night in Southwest Alaska, but initial reports say everyone walked away. It happened near the Kwigillingok airstrip, south of Bethel, at about 6:30pm. Clint Johnson with the National Transportation Safety Board says the aircraft was a Cessna 207, operated by Hageland-Era aviation.    People in the village tell Channel 2 News they saw the plane take off, then it banked to the left and went down. The aircraft apparently hit a frozen pond, bounced up and flipped over.

by The Associated Press Friday, February 19, 2010 BETHEL, Alaska -- Police in the southwest Alaska city of Bethel will seek authority to shoot dogs on the spot unless residents do a better job of keeping their pets from running wild. Police fed up with reports of dogs biting people have already started giving tickets to those with roaming dogs. If that doesn't convince citizens to keep their dogs on leashes, Chief Larry Elarton says he will ask city council to impose an emergency law allowing officers to shoot to kill.

Two Bethel boaters were reported overdue Monday afternoon, according to Alaska State Troopers. Troopers were told at about 1:30 p.m. Monday that Bethel residents Paul Charles Sr., 82, and Herbert Charles, 50, left the local boat harbor at about 2:30 p.m. Saturday headed for a fish camp on the southeast side of Nunivak Island. Both men were reportedly dressed for the conditions, and Paul Charles Sr. was last seen wearing a green down coat. The boat, a green Sea Ark purchased by Herbert Charles this year, is powered by an E-TEC 115 hp Evinrude outboard engine.

The Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation broke ground on a long-term care facility and assisted living center in Bethel Monday. The facility will provide people in the region with access to health care and hospices services in Bethel. Before most people in the region were referred to facilities in Anchorage. Elizabeth Lee the Home Care Director for Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporations says this day was a long time coming. "it's a dream come true we will be able to take care of our elders right here at home where they want to be. " Construction is underway and crews hope to have the facility complete in December 2012.

Alaskans love their pioneers, those who push into new frontiers like Tim Meyers. Meyers is the first and only farmer in Bethel, a town on the tundra of southwest Alaska, about 500 miles west of Anchorage, where he cultivates about 17 acres of land in some unorthodox ways. Here at KTUU, we've followed Meyers over the years, from growing crops on the tundra that people said would never grow in such an unforgiving land - to his experiments in building underground (Check out some of our links to past stories about Meyers.)

A flood warning remains in effect for the Kuskokwim River until 10 p.m. Wednesday. The Kuskokwim breached its banks in the village of Kwethluk in the past few days. On Sunday, sick and elderly residents were evacuated to Bethel after the flood warning was issued. The flood incident commander says river conditions have worsened since then flooding low lying areas and other parts of the community with about 6 inches of water. The village public safety officer says Sunday's evacuations were necessary.

A Bethel grand jury indicted three men this week on new charges related to the torture and murder of a Bethel teenager. Jeffrey Hout and Harry Williams are accused of beating Benjamin Kaiser to death to get information out of him about a missing truck. The indictment included new charges of kidnapping and second-degree murder, in addition to first-degree murder. The third man accused, David Kenney, wrote a book about being tortured in Kenya and seeking refuge in America. Police say his book has striking similarities to the Bethel crime.

Hundreds of people gathered at the Dena'ina Center in Downtown Anchorage to welcome Alaska Army National Guard soldiers with B Company, 1-143rd Infantry Airborne Regiment, home from a deployment to Afghanistan. More than 120 soldiers were honored for the work they have done overseas, as well as the sacrifice of giving up a year at home to serve their country. The Crow Creek Pipes and Drums opened the ceremony with bagpipe music. Ceremonial music including the national anthem and Alaska's state song were performed by the Alaska Brass Air Force Band of the Pacific . Members of B Company, based in Bethel, initially returned to the U.S. on Nov. 8. They arrived in Indianapolis before returning to their homes in Alaska, but hadn't seen each other since until the welcome-home ceremony.

Christmas came a little early for some students of the lower Kuskokwim School District. LifeMed Alaska and Toys for Tots brought more than 1,000 toys to Bethel children on Friday. Students from three different schools from pre-school through 6th grade were able to bring home a toy from Santa. The principal of one of the schools says the price of fuel costing $6.00 to $7.00 a gallon can really hit families in the pocketbook. “The economy is very tough out here as well,” Joshua Gill, Principal of Mikelnguut Elitnaurviat Primary School, said.

by Jason Lamb Tuesday, May 4, 2010 ANCHORAGE, Alaska -- Though the results are not yet finalized, it looks as though liquor restrictions will not be changing in Bethel after Tuesday's election. Bethel voters have decided with 619 "No" votes compared to 457 "Yes" votes to keep liquor restrictions the same in Bethel. That means staying out from under the state's "local option" restrictions, which barred alcohol sales in the town. "We have felt all along that we've had a pretty good standing, and it looks like that is the case, that a majority of folks in town really don't want the state to continue to have the heavy hand that they've had," Tom Hawkins said.

More than forty people in Bethel protested against the managers of the state's fisheries on Earth Day - their message, “we want our salmon back.” The protesters marched from the Department of Fish and Game office in Bethel to the court house in response to last year's fishing restrictions on the Kuskokwim River. “It's Earth Day and we wanted to convey, to let people know that we want to be idle no more and our resource management that our people live off here in the YK Delta,” Myron Naneng, President of the Association of Village Council Presidents, said.

The tale of Scotch, a female puppy rescued last month at the Yute Air Station in Bethel, is sort of a Cinderella story -- but despite an abusive past, both Scotch and the events leading to the dog's recovery are truly remarkable. At the beginning of March, a young man was seen showing Scotch off at Yute Air. When station pilots Derick Broderman and Jaimie Rault saw the dog later that day, however, Scotch's owner turned abusive. “He came in probably about an hour later and was seen hitting the dog and punching it in the face, so the pilots got a little upset,” said station manager Andrew Flagg.

Hundreds of dancers have gathered in Bethel this weekend for the Cama-i dance festival . The festival kicked off Friday night at the Bethel Regional High School gym. It's the largest dance festival in the region and put on by the Bethel Council on the Arts. People can sample traditional Native foods, buy handcrafted artwork, or enjoy live performances by dancers who come to the festival from all over the world. The festival runs for three days and ends Sunday, March 24. Contact Samantha Angaiak

The body of a Russian Mission snowmachiner missing for a week was found near Bethel Wednesday, with Alaska State Troopers saying alcohol is believed to have been a factor in his death. According to a Thursday AST dispatch, troopers were notified at about 7 p.m. Wednesday that Bethel Search and Rescue volunteers had found 32-year-old Harvey Pitka's body. The discovery was made about six and a half miles south of where Pitka's abandoned snowmachine had been found Monday, on the Woodcutters Trail about 30 miles northwest of Bethel.

None of the five people on board an air taxi flight that made a forced landing near Tuluksak Wednesday afternoon were injured, according to the National Transportation Safety Board. NTSB investigator Chris Shaver says the Yute Air Cessna 207 was en route from Bethel to Tuluksak when its engine failed one to two miles short of Tuluksak's airport, just before 4 p.m. Wednesday. Shaver says there weren't any weather issues reported at the time. “I believe the weather at the time was pretty favorable,” Shaver said.

Alaska National Guard units are preparing to respond later this week to a simulated airliner crash northwest of Bethel, in a test of their ability to conduct sustained search and rescue operations in distant parts of the state. A Monday statement from Guard spokesperson Maj. Guy Hayes says the exercise, to be held from Thursday through Saturday, will begin with two Air National Guard cargo planes -- a C-17 Globemaster III and a C-130 Hercules -- flying to the site, after reports to the 11th Air Force's Rescue Coordination Center of a plane crash in an area inaccessible by roads.

Bethel Search and Rescue volunteers say two brothers who were caught in a snowstorm Monday and reported missing have been found alive, after they reportedly spent two nights outdoors in the vicinity. According to an update posted at 11 a.m. Wednesday on Bethel Search and Rescue website BethelSAR.org, Phillip and Sam Charlie, 18 and 16 respectively, were found near the juncture of the Johnson River and a lake called Nunvarnaq. Alaska National Guard spokesperson Kalei Rupp says an Alaska State Troopers aircraft saw the brothers several hours into resumed search operations which began at 7 a.m. Wednesday.

Hundreds of people gathered at the Dena'ina Center in Downtown Anchorage to welcome Alaska Army National Guard soldiers with B Company, 1-143rd Infantry Airborne Regiment, home from a deployment to Afghanistan. More than 120 soldiers were honored for the work they have done overseas, as well as the sacrifice of giving up a year at home to serve their country. The Crow Creek Pipes and Drums opened the ceremony with bagpipe music. Ceremonial music including the national anthem and Alaska's state song were performed by the Alaska Brass Air Force Band of the Pacific . Members of B Company, based in Bethel, initially returned to the U.S. on Nov. 8. They arrived in Indianapolis before returning to their homes in Alaska, but hadn't seen each other since until the welcome-home ceremony.

Alaska State Troopers received a report of vehicle theft in Aniak on January 8, shortly before 8:30 p.m., according to an AST dispatch. Investigation revealed that 29-year-old Mason Gilila of Bethel stole a green, 1996 Honda 250 Recon four-wheeler from a residence off Morgans Road. According to the dispatch, while Gilila was stealing the ATV he ran over the leg of a juvenile male. Gilila was found to be driving under the influence of alcohol and with a revoked Alaska driver's license.

Christmas came a little early for some students of the lower Kuskokwim School District. LifeMed Alaska and Toys for Tots brought more than 1,000 toys to Bethel children on Friday. Students from three different schools from pre-school through 6th grade were able to bring home a toy from Santa. The principal of one of the schools says the price of fuel costing $6.00 to $7.00 a gallon can really hit families in the pocketbook. “The economy is very tough out here as well,” Joshua Gill, Principal of Mikelnguut Elitnaurviat Primary School, said.