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V°l- ^ No. 13 Monday, April 1, 1963 Fairbanks, Alaska
Three Killed
In Plane Crash
Near Bethel
Three persons, including a na
tive woman from Chevak, on her
way to the Alaska Native Hospital
in Anchorage, died in the crash of
a light plane Saturday near Bethel.
The crash occurred dicing a
whiteout about 20 miles west of
Anchorage.
Killed in the crash was Mrs. Tere
sa L. Chemeralera, of Chevak.
Also killed were: Gary Hodges,
32, of Bethel, veteran bush pilot,
and Jack E. Davis, formerly of In
liana, a sanitarian with the State
Department of Health.
The last report from Pilot Hodges
was received at 1:50 p.m. Saturday
and the wreckage was spotted about
7 p.m. Saturday.
State Aivaits BLM
Decision Before
Suing in Dispute
Thomas A. Snapp
Times Staff Writer
Despite the fact that the lower 48
states were surveyed by the federal
government in 640-acre tracts, the
federal government is maintaining
it will survey land selected by the
state of Alaska only in tracts more
than 50.000 acres in size.
The Bureau of Land Management,
basing its decision on the legislative
history of a statehood bill that was
n't parsed, may even try to turn
over to the young 49th state chunks
of land more than 1 million acres in
size.
If successful, the federal govern
ment may end up turning over to
Alaska areas larger than some of
the lower states.
Great Opposition
State officials and Alaska's sen
ior senator, Bob Bartlett, have vig
orously opposed this move on the
part of the federal Bureau of Land
Management which will put a great
er burden on the 49th state to sur
vey the large areas into smaller dis
posable tracts than occurred in the
lower states.
The Statehood Act requires state
selections to be reasonably com
pact and that the nature of the land
to be selected must be considered.
The state has interpreted this to be
tracts that are reasonably compact
and 5,760 acres or more in size.
Large Chunks
On the other hand, the Bureau of
Land Management has ruled the
state must select land in chunks
bearing the same topographical, geo
graphical, and economic features.
•The controversy that has devel
oped centers on the fact that the
BLM is obligated to survey the ex
terior boundaries of each state se
lection. If the state is required to
select huge areas, of course, the
BLM will have much less surveying
to do and their job will be much
easier.
In recent hearings before the In
terior subcommittee of the Senate
Appropriations Committee. Director
(Continued on Page 7)
ARCTIC SURVIVAL SAGA—Last week unfurled on the front pages
of newspapers across the country was a dramatic saga of Arctic
survival—the story of how two persons from Fairbanks. Ralph Flores
and Miss Helen Klaben (center.) surviver 49 days in the Yukon
wilds. The two crashed near Watson Lake in Canada, and despite
injuries, temperatures that ranged down to 40 below zero, and little
food, they lived to tell of their harrowing ordeal. Miss Klaben, above,
is being carried from a jet plane in Fairbanks by her brother,
Arthur Klaben. To the rear of Miss Klaben is Mrs. Elaine Gilman,
co-worker and friend. —Tundra Times Photo I
Savoonga News
Times Writer Gets Walrus
With Two Sets of Tusks
By John F. Kulowiyi *
Savoonga Correspondent
I want to let you know that I
have been chosen as a news reporter
from Savoonga for Tundra Times.
I won't be able to supply news
every week but I will do all I can.
Last January, during a warm
spell, I shot a rare walrus. Instead
of the usual two tusks, it had four.
It was the first time I had ever
seen one. People here say walrus
with four tusks are rare.
I have not yet cleaned the walrus
skull but I will do that later on.
Flu Caused Death
Joseph Alowa, of this village,
died March 19. His death was caused
by flu epidemic. He is survived by
his mother and three brothers, two
are here and one at Mt. Edgccumbc.
Several people are down with the
flu now. We heard about this epi
demic last fall over the radio and
that it might get to us during the
winter. We always seem to be last
to get sicknesses like this and others
in the past.
Medical Team
We have some visitors from Fed
eral and State medical departments.
They are in Savoonga to check on
peoples’ health. There is a doctor
from Kotzebue, dentist from Nome,
nurse from Fairbanks, Dorothy
Craig, vocational rehabilitation
worker, and a male social worker.
I don’t know where he is from.
The nurse, Miss SiugJflr,
became infected with the flu here
in Savoonga.
Walrus Taken
One of two men. Teddy Kasiki
and Alexander Akoya. I don't know
which, shot, a medium-sized walrus
on the 21st cf March. They were out
in a small skin boat when they got
it.
AEC Reduces Project Area,
SfiSi Plans Nuclear Blast
By Thomas A. Snapp ♦
Times Staff Writer
Project Chariot—a proposed ex
periment by the Atomic Energy
Commission to blast a harbor by
nuclear device at Cape Thompson
near Pt. Hope—is still planned, the
Tundra Times learned today.
The proposed blast, vehemently
opposed by Eskimos of the Arctic
Coast, was reported last year to
have been called off.
In a new withdrawal application
filed last Monday with the Bureau
of Land Management in Fairbanks,
the A.E.C . however, did not remove
as the purpose of the project the
nuclear blasting of a harbor.
Forced AEC’s Hand
j Recently, the U. S. Interior Dc
j partment forced the hand of the
A.E.C. by recommending that it
j "amend the application to specify
that the purpose of the withdrawal
is for biological investigations, omit
ting in the description of purposes
any authorization for explosion of
I a nuclear device.”
j By failing to do so, two research
' scientists who formerly worked on i
Project Chariot, say it is clear the !
A.E.C intends to use further biol- j
logical investigations to support a i
nuclear detonation there.
Allaying Fears
In the new request, the A.E.C.
dropped 1.013.100 acres, leaving a
withdrawal of approximately 96.000
acres. According to the two scien
tists. the reduction is an attempt
to allay fears of the general public
and the Eskimos who vigorously op
posed the Arctic nuclear experi
ment.
Fallout Seaward
They point out that officials of
the A.E.C. have recently talked of
putting the fallout seaward, toward
the Soviet Union, and that a great
land area is not needed for the
blast.
In August of last year the A.E.C.
announced it had decided to defer
CONTROVERSIAL CAPE THOMPSON—This cape has been a bone
of contention for several years now. Atomic Energy Commission has
now reduced its land withdrawal to 96,000 acres in that area. This
development seems to point to the fact that at a time of detonation
of nuclear devices the fallout area would be aimed at the sea. Dog
teams from Point Hope are shown mushing south on their way to
hunt caribou. —Photo by Don Charles Foote
any recommendation to President
Kennedy on whether to conduct the
experiment in northwestern Alaska,
that it was going to place the Pro
ject Chariot camp on a caretaker
status to be available for other sci
entific investigations.
January Hint
A hint of the A.E.C.'s continued
interest in blasting a harbor by
nuclear device came in January
through a communication to the
Interior Department from Glenn T.
Seaborg. chairman of the A.E.C.
Seaborg said. “We have not yet
been able to conclude from the re
sults of our experimental excavation
program that Project Chariot will
be unnecessary."
“It appears that the experimental
program will not have reached the
stage where such a decision can be
made for some time.”
Other Sources
“Some of the data originally
planned to be obtained from Chariot
ar,e now available or may be de
veloped from other experiments,"
A.E.C. Manager A. R. Llledecke
stated when the project was de
ferred.
It was understood that Luedecke
referred to the Nevada tests.
Ecological studies at Cape Thomp
son. Seaborg stated, are of consid
erable value independent of wheth
er Project Chariot is ever con
ducted.
Most Known Area
“They contribute to the missions
of several agencies . . . This area
is now unique because of those ex
tensive and intensive investigations.
In fact, it is one of the most com
pletely understood areas in the
(Continued on Page 7)
Fairbanks Group
Forms, Elects
1963 Officers
The newly formed Fairbanks
Alaska Native Association, held its
meeting last Friday, March 29. and
elected its officers. Ralph Perdue,
Fairbanks jeweler, was elected pres
ident. Nick Gray, formerly of Nome
and White Mountain, now a resident
of Fairbanks, was elected vice pres
ident.
Marge Moore, formerly of Unala
klcet. i of Fairbanks, was elected
secreta treasurer of the group.
Mrs. R ore is now employed as a
secreta y to Mr. Sargent, Dean at
the University of Alaska. She for
merly worked as secretary to the
Registrar at that institution.
It was decided at the meeting
that the group will meet on first
Tuesday of each month from M ay
through September. They will again
meet on the ninth of April in which
they will elect the Board of Direc
tors and discuss what the member
ship fees should be.
About 25 people attended the
meeting.