KMXT 100.1 FM Public Radio in Kodiak, Alaska
Jay Barrett and Kayla Desroches/KMXT
A little after 10 p.m. Thursday, Troopers on the vessel Chama’i landed at Uyak Bay, where a fire yesterday morning led to the death of one and the injury of three others at a remote Kodiak Island lodge.
Troopers retrieved the remains of one person and transferred them to the State Medical Examiner’s Office in Anchorage for autopsy and identification. According to an update from troopers, it is believed that the deceased individual and the survivors are foreign nationals.
According to the troopers’ last update, the victims’ names will be released after the body is identified and the appropriate individuals notified. A Deputy Fire Marshal is investigating the cause of the fire.
The blaze broke out around 4 a.m. Thursday at the Spirit of Alaska wilderness Adventures lodge in Uyak Bay, about 60 miles southwest of Kodiak City. The lodge is the former Parks Cannery, which closed in 1983.
As a result of the troopers’ delay, the cause of the fire is unknown, but judging from photos from the U.S. Coast Guard, taken from a mid-morning overflight, it appears the lodge’s bunkhouse was consumed. As listed on the company’s website, it held four bedrooms and a kitchen.
