Power Outages
(Swan’s Island) – Swan’s Island and Frenchboro lost power overnight as scattered thunderstorms rumbled through the area. Emera Maine estimated more than 500-customers on the two islands off Mt. Desert Island were without electricity this morning. Utility spokeswoman Judy Long reports to Star 97.7 that linemen will have to replace some broken poles and will work throughout the day to restore electricity. The Old Town area was also hit hard, with more than a thousand customers without electricity early this morning.
Knowlton Park Irrigation
(Ellsworth) – City councilors in Ellsworth have approved a plan to install an irrigation system at Knowlton Park after two straight summers of brittle, brown grass. The Ellsworth American reports the system could cost up to $35-thousand dollars. An irrigation system was included in the original park plan but cut due to the cost. Dry weather that began in early July left the expansive grass area brown with little growth. One citizen complained that Friday’s special meeting to approve the irrigation system had little public notice.
Playground Build Day
(Bar Harbor) The Park Street playground in Bar Harbor is about to undergo major changes thanks to a local mom who dreamed of a better playground for her kids and took action. Amy Schwartz tells Star 97-7 she started the Park Street playground project in 2011 after visiting other playgrounds in northern Maine. Schwartz says support from the town of Bar Harbor, the merchants association, local businesses and especially the Bar Harbor Rotary helped raise $150-thousand-dollars for new playground equipment. Volunteers are still needed for build day this Saturday, rain or shine. If you’re interested email: Park Street Playground at G Mail dot Com.
Fire Follow-up
(Columbia Falls) Maine Forest Service worked the holiday weekend monitoring the woods behind Balsam Valley Amphitheater in Columbia Falls hit by wildfire last week. District Ranger Peter Pelletier says rangers were on the ground through yesterday making sure the fire doesn’t flare up. The fire started late Thursday morning when a worker thinning out trees with a power saw hit a rock that caused a spark. Pelletier says 2 helicopters dropped water, while 2 bulldozers and an excavator dug containment lines, and the Columbia Falls and the Epping fire departments were there with all their mutual aid.
Weekend Fires
(Augusta) – Two of the 14 fires reported during Labor Day Weekend in Maine are arson cases. State Fire Marshal’s office investigators say the two intentional fires started in vacant buildings in Augusta and Millinocket. They’ve not yet charged anyone with setting the fires. The Fire Marshal’s office is also investigating a fire in Ellsworth that killed a dog and saw two women inside the Red Bridge Road home taken to the hospital with smoke inhalation. They’ve not released the cause of that fire yet.
Hacker Settlement
(Maine) Maine and 31 other states have reached a $3-point-5-millon-dollar settlement with a tech company accused of selling laptops with pre-installed software that made consumer’s personal info vulnerable to hackers. North Carolina-based Lenovo began selling laptops in 2014 enabled with a program called Visual Discovery. Consumer information including sensitive communications with encrypted web sites were collected and transferred to the company who created Visual Discovery. In addition to a small monetary payment, the settlement requires Lenovo to maintain a software security compliance program and to obtain regular assessments for the next 20 years.
MDI Educators
(Bar Harbor) The Mount Desert Regional School System welcomes 33 new staff members this fall. The Mt Desert Islander reports the new hires account for roughly 8-percent of the total number of employees within the system’s 9 schools and central office. 17 people who were with the school system last year have either taken on new duties this year or have transferred to another school in the system.
Teacher Check
(Portland) State education department officials say the release of a new online database that shows whether a school employee passed a criminal background check has been delayed. The Portland Press Herald reports the system was scheduled to launch July 1. Now, officials say the system will not be fully functional until mid-October.
Sports
- Boston Red Sox 3 Toronto Blue Jays 2 (19-innings, Hanley Ramirez knocks in Mookie Betts with the game winning run. Sox 3-and-a-half in front of the Yankees who lost to the Orioles).
- Tonight, the Sox start Doug Fister against Toronto.
- The Yankees accused the Red Sox of using smart watches to steal signs, and Major League Baseball has investigated. No penalties, yet.
High School Sports
Boys Soccer
Old Town 1 Hermon 0
(Tie) Dexter 3 George Stevens 3
Girls Soccer
Ellsworth 1 Belfast 0
Bucksport 1 George Stevens 0
Calais 5 Sumner 2
Searsport 2 DI/Stonington 0
Hampden 3 Skowhegan 2
Volleyball
Washington Academy 3 Ellsworth 0
Bucksport 3 George Stevens 0
Narraguagus 3 Sumner 2
Woodland 3 Machias 0
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