INTENSE BARROW STORM CAUSES NEAR TRAGEDIES
Lowell May Ask
Disaster Fund
From Lawmakers
BARROW, Oct. 7—Special—The
Barrow storm, serious as it was, may
have only opened the door for
another storm in January ... in
the State Legislature.
Don Lowell, state civil defense
director, in meetings with another
local state official here, said help
would have to be faster in coming
if the State of Alaska had a disas
ter fund. He noted that money for
such a fund had been proposed dur
ing the past two sessions of the law
making body, but it had been de
feated both times.
Lowell was sitting next to State
Senator and Barrow Council Leader
Eben Hopson when he said this.
As it is, federal, state and local
agencies are attempting to bring re
lief as fast as possible.
Because damage to state and com
munity owner property, of which
there is very little in Barrow, did
not reach $250,000, the area cannot
be declared a “disaster area for fed
eral assistance,” Lowell also said.
However, independent agencies can
act on their own, and are doing so,
he added.
Total damage is said to be over
Weather Bureau
Says Storm Was
Not Expected
BARROW. Oct. 7 (Special—Tire
strong storm that blasted Pt. Bar
row from the Chukchi Sea last
Thursday was completely unex
pected. local weather bureau per
sonnel report.
The storm packed winds of 80
miles per hour, bringing 15 foot
waves and some ice crashing into
this village and surrounding areas. !
Weather officials said the storm
was unexpected, because radio j
propagation had been poor for sev
eral days previous; and Barrow had
not received normal weather re
ports from Soviet Siberia.
Not Relayed
Pt. Barrow lies east of northern
Siberia, and Russian owned Wrangel
Island. The intense buildup that
created the storm, worst in history
here, was probably noted in Rus
sia, but its presence was not relayed
eastward. It is normal for the Unit
ed States and Russia to trade wea
ther reports in the northern lati
tudes.
$1 million; with most of this oc
curring to private persons, the na
tive Co-op Store, Central Construc
tion Co., Wien Alaska Airlines,
Golden Volley Electric, and federal
property.
WIEN ALASKA AIRLINES
KOTZEBUE . Twice Daily
* (Noatak-K.ivalina-Pt. Hope
Cape Lisburne) . Mon., Wed., Fri. j
* (Noorvik-Kiana-Selawik.) . Tues., Thur., Sat. |
*(Shungnak-Kobuk-Ambler) . Thur.
* (Buckland) . Tues. Sa.t
NOME . Twice Daily
* (White Mountain-Golovin-Elim
Moscs Ft.-Koyuk) . Moil., Wed., Fr.i
*<Shaktoolik-Unalakleet) . Mon., Fri. \
* (Teller-Teller Mission-Port Clarence
Tin City-Waies-Shismaref . Tues., Thur., Sat.
* (Granite Mtn-Candle-Deering) . Tues., Sat.
*Kotzebue-Barrow) . Tues., Thur., Sat.
* (Gambell-Savoonga
Northeast Cane) . Mon.. Wed., Fri.
FORT YUKON . Daily
*( Barter Island) . Sun.
•Beaver-Stevcns Village) . Alan., Wed., Fri.
•(Rampart-Tanana) . Mon.
•(Venctie-Arctic Village) . Tues., Sat.
•(Old Crow) . 3rd Thur.
•iChalkyitsik-Shuman House-Canyon Village) . Fri.
* (Birch Creek,) . Tues.
FT. BARROW . Daily
•(Umiat) . Mon., Wed., Fri.
* (Wainwright) . Mon., Wed., Fri.
* (Ft. Lay) . Wed.
‘(Meade River) . Tues.
* (Coleville) . 1st & 3rd Thur.
TANANA . Daily ex. Sun.
HUGHES . Tues., Thur., Sat.
•(Utopia) (also served out of Betties, see below,) . Tues., Thur.
•(Hogatza, Huslia) . Thur.
BETTLES . Tues., Thur., Sat.
* (Utopia) . Sat.
•lAllakaket, Hughes) . Tues., Thur., Sat.
*(ChandeIar) .,. Sat.
•(Big Lake) . 1st & 3rd Sat.
•(Wiseman) .-. Wed.
•(Porcupine Creek .... Once per too. on Wed., conditions permitting
* (ANAKTUVUK Pass) . Thur.
•(Ruby Creek-Kobnk) . Tues.
GALENA . Afon., Wed., Fri.
•(Koyukuk-Nulato-Kaltag-Kalakaket) . Alon., Wed., Fri.
•(Ruby) . Alon., Wed., Fri., Sat.
•(Huslia) . Alon.
•(Kokrines) . Service by boat from Ruby every Mon.
CIRCLE HOT SPRINGS-CIRCLE . Tues.. Sat.
RAMPART . Tues., Fri.
LIVENGOOD . Fri.
WOODCHOPPER-EAGLE . Alon., Wed.. Fri.
BOUNDARY-CHICKEN . Wed.
MINTO-MANLEY HOT SPRINGS . Tues., Fri.
CHEN A HOT SPRINGS . Tues.
UTOPIA-HUGIIES-HOGATZA-KOBUK
KIAi\A-KOTZEBUL .. Mon.
CHARTERS available anywhere utilizin'* the following equipment:
Cessna 180, Cessna 185, Pilatus, Beaver, Porter, Norseman. Twin
Beechoraft, DC-3, Supei 46 and F-27. We invite ycuv inquiry.
•NOTT - Connections arc made with bush aircraft to communities
In parenthesis.
MOEST AJEASITAAIRLIMES
3rd Ave. & Lacey Street PHONE 452-3555 452-3115
Hours — 5:30 o.so. to 10:00 p.m. Dally Except Sunday
! Guy Okokok, Tundra Times
Writer, Loses His Home
BARROW. Oct. 7 (Special)—Many
tales of fright and near misses re
sulting from Thursday’s unexpected
wind and sea storm are circulating
Barrow.
Times Writer Loses Home
One of these comes from Tundra
Times correspondent Guy Okakok,
who was among those to lose his
home and much of his possessions.
Another is told by Tom Brower,
businessman, who lost the front
wall of his building. A building that
was first erected on Pt. Barrow as
a whaling station in the 1880s and
has withstood storms ever since . . .
until last week.
The Okakok story goes thusly . , .
Guy and his wife left home for
work early in the morning, leaving
several children in the hcuse.
When the storm began to reach its
peak about 9 a.m., a neighbor no
ticed the door of the house open
ing, then shutting quickly as high
seas pounded against the house. The
neighbor, realixing somebody must
be in the house, waited for a break
in the storm, then ran over and
found the children . . . wanting to
come out, but afraid to leave.
Waves Fill House
In her haste to get the children
out of the house, as the storm was
beginning to blow harder than ever,
Die neighbor left the door open. It
was reported that the next few high
waves then filled the house with
water, and the resulting pressure
knocked down two walls and part ■
of the roof. The rest of the house
was demolished by wrecking crews
for safety's sake the next day.
In Brower’s case, it was reported
he escaped out of the back of his
s s s s s s s s s s s s s s $
WE PAY YOU
TOP PROS
FOR SEAL SKINS
We pay shipping charges
to Seattle
Write for further information
JONAS BROS. OF ALASKA !
1507 12th Avenue
Seattle 22, Washington
S SSSSSSSS.SSSSSS !
^____
building just as a high sea reached
up from the ocean and tore out the
front wall.
Many tourists will remember the
wall. It was adorned with artifacts
and included a large moosehide with
figures burned onto it. Another
story making the rounds concerns
a widow in Barrow village proper,
who, thinking her friends were out
side her house to rescue her, told
them to wait a minute while she
gathered some things together.
Waves Move House
A sudden wave began to move
the house, and as she looked out a
j window for her friends, realized
1 they had departed long ago. She
then dropped her things stopped
' talking and ran outside. Shortly af
i ter the house was demolished.
She is reported to have told her
friends later, that if she had known
she was alone, she'd have left
earlier.
Lake Contaminated
By Sea Water,
Fuel Oil, Sewage
BARROW. Oct. 7 (SpciaP—The
worst problem facing this village
today is water.
One of the primary lakes from
which water is obtained, both by
the villagers, and surrounding fed
eral camps, including a nearby
DEWline site, has been contaminat
ed by salt water, petroleum fuel,
and sewage.
Another nearby lake is expected
to freeze to the bottom shortly, as
the middle of winter approaches. It
will bp possible for people to get
ice from this lake, but the con
taminated lake will be out of com
mission for several years, health
authorities warn.
Means of solving this problem,
critical even in normal times, is now
facing local and outside agencies.
"cuff* barber shop
Bill Shield's Cookery
423 2nd Ave.
Fairbanks. Alaska
Cliff Cundy
NEW CLASSIFIED SERVICE j
The Tundra Times announces a new classi- j
fied ad service.
List your wants ... or what you have to
sel', give away, or barter. Native crafts, boats,
| rifles, furs, snowshoes, fish, property . . . what
s have you.
Write Tundra Times, Classified,
Box 1287, Fairbanks, Alaska
Barrow Storm ...
(Continued from Page 1)
Partially Completed Field
Other relief officials reached Bar
row Saturday on a Wien F-27 prop
jet, that landed on the new, par
tially completed Barrow airstrip.
A Wien DC-3 also landed on th«
field with freight earlier that day.
The arriving relief officials repre
sented the Red Cross and stats
civil defense, the Bureau of Indian:
Affairs, Corps of Engineers and
Golden Valley Electric Co-op of
Fairbanks that is working on sup
plying the village with power.
Three generators recently landed
from the BIA ship “North Star"
were severely damaged by t.i«
storm.
Hold Meeting
Meetings have been held between
village officials, primarily repre
1 sented by State Senator and Council
President Ebon Hopson, council
members Wyman Panigeo and A1
Hopson, and local Civil Dcfen.'S
Agent Lou Fravel.
Primarily representing the stale
have been Don Lowell, director of
civil defense and Larry Stratton of x
the Division of Aviation. Stratton
and Wien official. Parsons, have
been working on means to hurry
compaction of the new airfield tr»
allow needed freight to be hauled in.
Damage Severe
The U.S. Navy field, several
miles from the village, was severe
ly damaged, and may not be oper
able for months, according to offi
cials. In addition to damage in Bar
row. and the nearby community of
Browerville. the storm also played
havoc with the Vinnell Corp. op
erated construction camp that serv
ices the DEWlinc. and is the head
quarters of the Arctic Research Lab.
Final figures on damage, and
means of repairing damage before
the worst of winter sets in may
take several days to work out. ac
cording to officials on the scene.
The immediate work of caring for
displaced persons is the first job
being handled by the officials.
Even this work is being hampered
by continued winds gusting to 40
mph. with snow. Visibility in the
area is poor, and no air tralfic
could get into, or leave Barrow on
Sunday.
Adler's Book Shop
Out-of-town orders solicited
and filled promptly
Box 1159, Fairbanks
—
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