More and more it seems commercial fisheries news in Alaska deals with the coronavirus pandemic and COVID-19. This week is no exception.
Small coastal Alaska towns prepare for swarms of fishermen and others who may bring the highly contagious COVID-19 disease with them from Outside Alaska, or even from other areas of the state. We look at the Washington state factory trawler where three-fourths of its 120-member crew has tested positive for COVID-19.
Bristol Bay communities don’t have enough medical facilities to handle a big outbreak of COVID-19. Help came by way of an evangelical Christian organization which flew in a field hospital out to the Bristol Bay Borough.
And finally, a letter to fishermen outlines the rules for fishing this summer.
We had help from Nat Herz and Lori Townsend with Alaska Public Media in Anchorage. Izzy Ross at KDLG in Dillingham. Davis Hovey at KNOM in Nome. And Alaska Fish Radio’s Laine Welch.
A big thank you to all the listeners of the Alaska Fisheries Report and to all the radio stations that air our program.
For you fishermen, be careful, please follow the COVID rules—for your sake and for those whom you might come in contact with out fishing.
