With prayers and Gwich’in singing, the family of Elia Ansaknok gathered Sunday morning to resume searching for his body in the Chena River. Elia’s uncle, David Solomon of Copper Center led family members in song, as Fairbanks City Police and Alaska State Troopers launched three boats yesterday at Graehl Landing to dredge the river below the pedestrian bridge where Ansaknok
went into the river June 19.
At 1:42 last Friday afternoon, the Fairbanks Fire Department received a report that a man jumped or fell off the Chena River pedestrian bridge, and was seen briefly struggling in the water. Since then, searchers with the Tanana Chiefs conference, the City of Fairbanks Police and Fire Departments, University Police and US Fish and Wildlife Troopers have dragged the river.
Ansaknok’s family, including some who traveled in from Fort Yukon and elsewhere around the region, have been standing vigil under canopies in the park at Graehl Landing.
Solomon said the family is providing sandwiches and drinks for the searchers, and accepting donations of gasoline and oil for the boats as well as food, paper plates, cups and plasticware.
This is the second tragedy for the Ansaknok family in two months; on June 17, Andrew Ansaknok drowned in the Yukon River at Fort Yukon.
