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Heavy Rains and Downed Planes: Thoughts from the Yukon

John Quigley got the last of the volunteers in place at the Gwich'in demonstration before the chopper arrived to photograph the human artwork.

John Quigley got the last of the volunteers in place at the Gwich'in demonstration before the chopper arrived to photograph the human artwork.

As I write this on August 13 from my aunt and uncle's couch in Eagle River, the local news is focused on plane crashes. The story after coverage of the crash that killed widely respected former Senator Ted Stevens announced another small plane crash near McGrath, northwest of Anchorage, in which a mother and her 16 year-old daughter lost their lives. Their funerals were scheduled back-to-back, one at 4pm, and the next the following hour. I can't imagine how someone close to the family could handle a day like that. The McGrath crash was the third fatal crash and fourth overall since I've been here.

It started with the C-17 crash on Elmendorf Airforce Base, just before the base's biannual airshow. The second was a plane carrying five people that went down on Knik Glacier, just north of Eagle River and east of Palmer. Four days of 70mph winds coming off the glacier made for a constant white-out conditions, keeping rescuers at bay. A National Guard Blackhawk was damaged during the rescue attempt, leaving seven rescuers stuck on the glacier, as well. The whole dozen finally made it off the ice when the wind let up a day later.

I love to fly; my family owns a small plane and I grew up around pilots, but crash after crash reiterates how fickle an airfoil is. The weather forecaster had more bad news: Today marks a record-tying 27th consecutive day of precipitation in the Anchorage Bowl. To top it off, I just got with a phone call from my father who reported that my hometown of Martell, Wisconsin, got six inches of rain two days ago, washing a few of my neighbors' cows down the Rush River, which, under normal conditions, runs knee-deep. In addition, there is a flood advisory for the area around the lower Porcupine River; it sounds like my new friends in Fort Yukon haven't missed out on the rain either.

I spoke with Kay Wallis, a board member on the Gwich'in Steering Committee, yesterday and have appointments with several individuals at Alaska Fish & Game. My work here in Alaska is wrapping up. I have a few more outlets to pitch my ideas to and then it's on to putting everything together. It's been a memorable trip. I've been around Anchorage and the Kenai Peninsula many times, but this excursion gave me the opportunity to explore new areas and more notably meet many new and fascinating people.