Graves at the historic St. Michael cemetery in Alaska are eroding due to increased storms and erosion, prompting an archaeologist to recover exposed remains and coordinate efforts to re-bury them. Tom Wolforth’s prime mission was to appropriately handle the remains and make sure they could be reburied. He has been working closely with the tribe and the municipality to address their concerns. One concern, Martin said, was that these exposed remains could pose a risk of disease, especially if the dead had been buried during the time of the 1918 flu pandemic. But Wolforth assured them that if properly handled this shouldn’t be a problem.
The erosion of the Old Russian Cemetery from the impacts of the storm Merbokis also an unfinished process. The earth is actively moving, falling onto the beach bit by bit and sometimes in large chunks every day, to reach a state of stabilization after the storm.
Erosion of Russian era graves is a concern because of history with epidemic, and tribal office has to collect and rebury remains.
An unseasonable rain event brought high rainfall and led to high water, especially around noon on August 3rd.
"We were lucky to have the berm in place. The next day, the water levels went down and the erosion was noticeable."
Smoke from the North River fire is impacting outdoor air quality. The ADEC Division of Air Quality has issued an air quality advisory in effect from Tuesday, June 18, 2019 8:00 AM to Friday June 21, 2019 4:00 PM.
Smoke from the South River Hills Fire could be seen from Unalakleet. The fire began approximately 6 miles from the community, and grew from 30 to 160 acres.It was contained by BLM Alaska Fire Service Smokejumers by 11pm on June 9, 2019.
Wildfire smoke visible in Unalakleet.
Using a hand-held Garmin Montana 650t unit, I took photos of the tideline in three areas.
Early fall weather conditions brought on an extreme storm surge in a Norton Sound community.
9-24-13 Bluff erosion - St. Michael, Alaska
All Topics
All Countries
Any Date
Apply