Special from the
Anchorage Daily News
Dog Mauls Girl in
Marshall
A 3-year old girl was mauled in the fifth and worst dog
attack this year in Marshall, a Yukon Delta village with as
many dogs as people.
A young female husky mix mangled Freida Sergie's face and
head Friday in Marshall after the child wandered into a
neighbor's open yard. As with previous attacks in the
village of 350, the chained dog's puppies were nearby and
the husky may have felt threatened by a stranger, Mayor Ray
Alstrom said in a telephone interview.
Dog attacks, which are a recurring problem in
rural Alaska, have become so frequent in Marshall that villagers
met Tuesday to explore ways to deal with their 350 dogs. "People are aware of the problem already," Alstrom said.
"Now we have to do something about it."
In Friday's attack, the girl entered the yard shortly
before 3:30 p.m. and approached the husky, which was about
10 yards from her puppies, village public safety officer
Richard Ellis said. The dog bit the child numerous times,
tearing her right eyelid and tear duct, face, scalp, neck
and shoulders, said Dr. Bill Brundage, who treated the girl
at the Alaska Native Medical Center. The injuries required
numerous stitches, he said.
The girl's twin sister heard screams and found her
father, Vassily Sergie, who ran over and plucked Freida from
the dog's reach, local authorities said. Sergie took his
daughter to the village clinic before the girl was flown to
the Aniak Regional Clinic and then to Anchorage. she was
admitted to the medical center early Saturday and released
Tuesday.
The dog, which had not been vaccinated, was destroyed.
Rabies tests were negative, Ellis said.
All five attacks this year involved dogs that were
chained, and four involved children, Ellis said. The least
serious attack involved an adult.
A Marshall ordinance allows authorities to shoot any dog
on the spot that is found not chained or otherwise
restrained, Ellis said. But the law is not enforced in the
dog mushing village because there would be a public outrage
and no one is willing to do the grim job, Ellis said.
Another factor is that many villages don't have a
veterinarian, said Ellis, who administers rabies shots to
Marshall dogs. Most dogs in the village aren't spayed or
neutered unless owners are willing to pay the expense of
flying their pets 70 miles to Bethel. So the dogs keep
multiplying, many of them running free and unsupervised.
"Dog attacks are a widespread problem in the bush," he
said. "And communities need to come up with innovative ways
to deal with it."
Since 1980, at least 20 people in Alaska have died from
dog attacks, said state injury specialists Ron Perkins. The
vast majority of the victims were toddlers, he said. From
1991 to 1996, dog attacks accounted for 66 serious injuries,
according to the state Community Health and Emergency
Medical Services.
"The solution all boils down to how people love their
pets," Ellis said. "If you love your pet, you II want to
keep it contained, take it to the vet and get it spayed or
neutered. You'll want to keep it safe."
By Rachel D'oro
Fishing's Great in
Marshall
People have been catching a lot of fish
around town lately. According to the many fishermen I've
interviewed, they've been using three different methods
for
fishing for four or five different
species of fish.
One of the methods they use to catch fish
is the fish trap. Paul Boots, Leo Fitka and Vernon Evan have
all set big fish traps. Paul Boots and Leo Fitka have had
their fish trap set for a month and are catching about 15-25
lush every other day. Vernon has been catching about five
lush every time he goes to check his trap.
The second method is the fish net. Nick
Isaac and Mike Fitka have nets set for fish. Nick has been
Catching chee fish and white fish. He has a net down near
the Pilot Station trail on the Yukon River and when he
checks his net every other day he finds about three or four
fish. He catches them for himself and his dogs. Mike has his
net on Polty's Slough and when he checks it every 2-3 days
he finds about 5-10 white fish. He uses his fish for himself
and for his dogs.
The last method is ice fishing. Terry
Manumik and others have been doing pretty good at their ice
fishing. She says she usually catches about 7-20 pike every
time she goes. She goes fishing at Kuyukutuq and uses her
fish for making akutaq and jerky, and she also dries
it.
Jonathan Boots
|
 
New Marshall Armory Opens with a
Bang
The official opening of the armory was
held on the 6th of December. The ceremony started at five
o'clock and was held at the new armory which was completed
the middle of last month. The community of Marshall
participated along with seven members of the National Guard.
1st Sergeant Greg Patsy, Major Nantz and Colonel Glines came
over by helicopter from Bethel to be at the opening. And
NCOIC Moses Duny from Marshall also mandatorily
attended.
The new armory will be used for National
Guard drills, moots (annual gatherings), and search and
rescue meetings. These will take place throughout the year
in the new facility. According to Moses Duny, it could also
be used for dances or even a "hang out" if the National
Guard is given a month's notice.
Cheryl Hunter
Marshall Has a New
Priest
Paul Cochran, S.J., is the new priest
here in Marshall. He was born in Walla Walla, Washington, in
1962, and grew up there also. He went to Walla Walla High
School (Wa-Hi), and then to college at Gonzaga University in
Spokane, Washington, where he studied philosophy and
computer science. He graduated with a Master of Divinity
from Regis College in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Paul has been working here since
August,1997, and plans to work here for maybe two to three
years. He likes his job because he gets to meet people from
many different places, travel to new places, and to help in
strengthening Catholics in their faith and daily lives. He
first became interested in being a priest when he was going
to Gonzaga University where priests were his
teachers.
He says, "The best thing about my job is
the new challenges and opportunities to meet people and go
places. The worst thing about it is that I don't get a
chance to settle down for a long period of time in one
place.
Tatiana Sergie and Tassie
Fitka
|
Marshall
Cultural Atlas
