Man found dead on boat in Southeast Alaska

From the Alaska State Troopers:

Location: Ketchikan
Type: Death investigation
On 7/30/16 at approximately 0547 hours, the Alaska State Troopers in Ketchikan were notified by the U.S. Coast Guard of an unresponsive male aboard the F/V Odin in Anita Bay. The male was identified as Charles Richards, 28, of Seattle. Crewmembers found Richards in his bunk unresponsive. Wrangell Search and Rescue was notified and responded. Wrangell SAR transported Richards to the Wrangell clinic where he was pronounced deceased. An Alaska wildlife trooper in Wrangell responded to investigate. The state medical examiner's office was notified and the deceased was transported for examination. The exact cause of death is unknown pending results from the SME. Next of kin have been notified.

'Presumed sunk'

Searchers have given up trying to find the abandoned trawler Alaska Juris.

The vessel is "presumed sunk in approximately 5,400 feet of water," says this news release from the Unified Command.

What became of abandoned trawler?

The search continues for the F/V Alaska Juris.

Here's a news release.

Update on the F/V Alaska Juris

All 46 people off the F/V Alaska Juris have been rescued safely, the U.S. Coast Guard reports.

More details in this news release.

The Coast Guard also has posted some video.

Major incident in the Aleutians

The Associated Press is reporting that 46 people have abandoned a sinking vessel, the Alaska Juris, near Kiska Island.

Read the story here.

Case dismissed

A Juneau judge has thrown out a lawsuit challenging Gov. Bill Walker's dismantling of the Commercial Fisheries Entry Commission.

Here's the ruling.

Standing up for dipnetters

State Sen. Bill Wielechowski, D-Anchorage, last week sent this letter urging the Department of Fish and Game to curtail Cook Inlet commercial fishing to free up more salmon for dipnetters.

Bristol Bay bounty

Gillnetters have had a big year at Bristol Bay.

The sockeye catch stands at 35.9 million fish, with the season now grinding to its conclusion. That's well above the state's preseason harvest forecast of 29.5 million.

Even better, the major processors have posted a base price to fishermen of 75 cents a pound, up from last year's disappointing 50 cents.

The Naknek-Kvichak District has been the most productive of the bay's five fishing zones with a catch of more than 13 million sockeye.

Salmon notes

Here are a few notes on Alaska's commercial salmon season thus far.

• The Bristol Bay harvest stands just shy of 5 million sockeye, and the daily catch topped 1 million fish for the first time on Saturday. The state has forecast a catch of 29.5 million sockeye this year.

• Farther north, the relatively new processing plant at Platinum is closed this season, leaving Kuskokwim fishermen without a buyer. Coastal Villages Region Fund provided this internal memo explaining the closure.

• The general summer troll season started Friday in Southeast Alaska. Trollers are targeting 122,000 treaty Chinook in the first opening.