"Bob Mattson"

A seiner lost an estimated 70,000 pounds of pink salmon when his boat ran aground on August 6 near Sitka. Although none of the fish were contaminated by fuel, the load had spoiled by the time the vessel was refloated.

State and federal agencies are readying boom and preparing to haze birds as the 96-foot Challenger is raised as early as Sunday.

The system was developed after the freighter Selendang Ayu lost power and grounded off of Unalaska Island in Dec. 2004. Six crewmembers were killed when the ship broke in half and spilled oil and its soybean cargo along the shoreline.