KDLG - Dillingham

Dismer received more than $4 million from customers but he never fully delivered on his promises, instead spending much of the money on personal expenses.

The salmon runs are central to people’s lives in many ways. The economy has developed around the commercial fishery, and fish also provide food for the winter.

Ocean waters are a few degrees warmer in the Gulf of Alaska, and that slight difference has challenged fish populations south of Bristol Bay.

Most fish that returned this year only spent one or two years in the ocean instead of three, but they’re also getting smaller for their age.

Salmon counters’ numbers inform decisions about when to open and close commercial fishing.

Debbie Coolidge started fishing when she was 8 years old. Today, in her mid-50s, she’s still at it and continuing the traditions she learned from her grandmother.

Mabel Baldwin-Schaeffer is the first tribal coordinator for the Alaska Fisheries Science Center’s communications program. 

63.2 million fish have returned to the bay this year, breaking the 2018 record of 62.9 million. 

Three cases of rabies have been reported in Dillingham foxes this spring.

The closure will give bears unhindered access to shallower waters.