Jun. 22—Maine summers are indeed getting hotter. And the state, which has more experience dealing with extreme cold than extreme heat, finds itself unprepared. Portland summers are 2.4 degrees warmer than in 1970, with two additional weeks of abnormally hot weather. That’s pretty close to the average increase nationwide. Portland’s summer nights are 3.6 degrees […]
Isle au Haut, Maine — If you take a ferry to Isle au Haut, an island community way off the coast of Maine, you can visit a gift shop and general store. And that’s it, because there are no other businesses on the island. “People who live out here are resilient, they’re creative,” Bob Olney, […]
Jun. 20—The National Weather Service issued a series of alerts about severe thunderstorm moving through Maine Thursday afternoon, fueled by a third day of extreme heat. All major population areas, such as Portland, Lewiston, Bangor and Augusta, could experience severe storms beginning late Thursday afternoon and into the evening, possibly producing hail, wind gusts of […]
Jun. 18—Many Maine cities and towns have arranged for cooling centers as an “excessive heat watch” has been put into effect by the National Weather Service. Lewiston City officials announced temporary cooling centers at 45 Park St. across from Park Street Garage and next to Dufresne Plaza and at SeniorsPlus at 8 Falcon St. The […]
CAMDEN, Maine (AP) — Suspicious deaths in an idyllic seaside community and detective work that points to poison sound like themes from a classic murder mystery. But the victims in this Maine whodunnit were trees that stood in the way of a wealthy family’s oceanfront view, allegedly felled by well-heeled killers who, while ostracized and […]
Jun. 17—Maine will receive $272 million in federal funding over the next five years to expand high-speed internet service, Gov. Janet Mills announced Monday. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration approved Maine’s spending plan for the largest sum ever dedicated to boosting broadband in the state. The award, which was anticipated since last year when […]
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Maine’s shortage of public defenders allowed a man with a violent criminal history to be released on bail three days before he went to his former girlfriend’s Auburn home, where another man was killed before an hourslong standoff with police in which shots were exchanged, two houses burned to the ground […]
Jun. 17—Every day at Reiche Elementary School’s summer program starts with a community gathering. Students, teachers and administrators sing a song or dance together. Summer program class sizes are small, and school days are abbreviated. Teachers have less on their plates. “One thing we’ve really worked on doing is having a kind of joyous, camp-like […]
BERWICK, Maine — Rachael Casagrande said she will work to change local and state animal cruelty laws after her parents’ dog, a 4-year-old husky named Rowdy, was legally shot and killed by a neighbor. The worst part, she said, is the neighbor, a man she and her husband know, tried to cover up the dog’s […]
Jun. 13—The nonprofit that owns the Portland Press Herald, Sun Journal and Kennebec Journal has been recognized for its coverage of the Lewiston mass shooting. The New England First Amendment Coalition, an organization dedicated to protecting First Amendment rights, is honoring the Maine Trust for Local News with the Michael Donoghue Freedom of Information Award. […]
Jun. 12—Any Mainer with eyes and a sweet tooth already knew that we were living in the golden age of bakeries in Portland. We didn’t need celebrity chef and cookbook author Amanda Freitag to tell us so. “Well, it looks like Portland, Maine, might be vying for pastry capital of America,” Freitag told the industry […]
Officials at Maine’s most popular state beach posted signs last week that warn visitors the terrain beneath their feet could give way and land them in natural pockets of sticky sediment. The signs at Popham Beach State Park, about 50 miles east of Portland, warn visitors of the potential hazards near the mouth of the […]