If you want to get a good laugh, ask a Kodiak fisherman how the EVOS settlement has affected his/her life.

“The overall process has undermined peoples’ confidence in the legal system,” said Toby Sullivan, a Kodiak setnetter.

March 24, 1989, the oil tanker Exxon Valdez ran aground, spilling 10.8 million gallons of crude oil into Prince William Sound.

The event ranks as North America’s largest oil spill, and it profoundly affected Alaskan coastal communities that lay in its path.

In 1994 an Anchorage jury awarded Alaska plaintiffs affected by the spill $5 billion in punitive damages. Subsequent appeals over the following 14 years eventually worked their way to the U.S. Supreme Court. There the award was reduced to $507.5 million, a mere 10 percent of the original amount.

Once the laughter subsides, however, many people turn philosophical, as if unable to dismiss the event from their mind. Has the Exxon settlement brought closure to the event in the minds of Kodiak citizens?

How has the EVOS settlement affected your life? The Mirror will report responses to this question in a future edition. Call 512-2624 or e-mail your response to hdodge@kodiakdailymirror.

Kodiak observes the 20th anniversary of the Exxon Valdez oil spill (EVOS) through a series of events.

“Kodiak Out Loud!” kicks off the weeklong observation March 14 in the high school auditorium. Seven fisher poets, writers and musicians will present original poetry, stories and songs about the sea.

The Kodiak Maritime Museum is creating a display of historical oil spill photographs. “Images of the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill on Kodiak Island” will be unveiled on March 20 at Kodiak College.

The Kodiak Maritime Museum is soliciting photos for the exhibit. Anyone with pictures to share is asked to call Toby Sullivan, 486-0384.

Mirror writer Harry Dodge can be reached at hdodge@kodiakdailymirror.com.