BATH

Fire won’t delay Navy ship but Maine BEP appeal could

The U.S. Navy said a fire that erupted May 20 in the engine stack of a Navy destroyer docked at Bath Iron Works will not delay the vessel’s scheduled departure in September.

Chris Johnson, a spokesman for the Naval Sea Systems Command, said an investigation by the Navy revealed that the fire broke out when workers started the USS Spruance’s gas turbine main engine during a routine test.

Johnson said the fire was caused when a faulty circuit card failed, allowing excess fuel to enter the engine. Johnson described the damage as “pretty minimal.”

The only thing that could delay the Spruance’s departure is a pending July 21 appeal before the Maine Board of Environmental Protection.

The town of Phippsburg and several other parties, including commercial clam harvesters and the Phippsburg Land Trust, say the DEP should not have issued a dredging permit to the federal government, which plans to dredge the Kennebec River in August to permit the safe passage of the Spruance.

Opponeents argue that dredging during the height of summer will negatively impact tourism, boating, and commercial fishing.

STARKS

Missing man, 83, found alive, alert, wet near bog

Maine game wardens have found a missing 83-year-old Starks man.

Robert Hooker was alive and alert when he was found Monday about a half-mile from his home.

Hooker, who had been missing since Sunday afternoon, was found near a bog after a search by air, land and with search dogs. He was wet, likely from the rain that hit the central Maine area Sunday evening.

Hooker was last seen at about 4 p.m. Sunday.

The Warden Service was assisted by the Starks Fire Department and Mercer Rescue.

BANGOR

Man sentenced to life term for fatally stabbing teen girl

A 36-year-old man is going to prison for life after being convicted of fatally stabbing a teenager along the city’s waterfront two years ago.

Colin Koehler of Bangor was convicted last October of stabbing 19-year-old Holly Boutilier of Old Town. Her bloody body was found in an abandoned shack under the Interstate 395 bridge Aug. 9, 2009.

Koehler was sentenced Monday in Penobscot County Superior Court. He had faced between 25 years and life in prison.

Prosecutors say Koehler stabbed Boutilier in the abdomen and slit her throat. He has denied any involvement in the killing.

SANFORD

School board fails to adopt new name for mascot – yet

It will be fall at the earliest before the Sanford School Committee adopts a new mascot name for the high school.

When September rolls around, Sanford will be the sole Maine community that uses the name “Redskins” for its school sports teams. At one time, several Maine schools called their sports teams Redskins, a name that Native Americans find offensive.

In Sanford, the school committee inched toward change as it heard last week from high school civil rights team leaders about a survey on the high school mascot.

The Journal Tribune in Biddeford said team leaders reported that the majority of the 448 students, faculty and staff surveyed leaned toward keeping the Redskins name, but about 40 percent were ready for change or at least to talk about it.

 

Blaze burns home, sends one firefighter to hospital

Fire burned a home at 122 Sand Pond Road in Sanford on Sunday and sent one firefighter to the hospital with symptoms of heat exhaustion.

The fire broke out at about 9 p.m. at the home of Mark Patterson, co-owner of PATCO Construction, a residential and commercial company based in Sanford.

The fire was first spotted in a breezeway connecting two sections of the structure, but a sunroom on the back of the house had already collapsed by the time firefighters arrived, said acting Assistant Chief Gary Cushing.

The fire appeared to be fed by propane, which was used for heat and for a gas grill.

The nearest hydrant is a half-mile away, so Cushing ordered tanker trucks to set up a water shuttle.

The fire was under control by 11:30 p.m., but firefighters stayed on scene until 7 a.m. Monday.

Several firefighters were checked for heat exhaustion, including one taken to the hospital for observation and released Monday morning, Cushing said.

PORTLAND

Foundation’s grant to help Fort Allen Park restoration

A $20,000 grant will help pay for the design phase of a restoration of Fort Allen Park near the Eastern Promenade.

The grant from the Davis Family Foundation will go to Friends of the Eastern Promenade, which has begun a restoration project that is scheduled to be completed in 2014, 200 years after Fort Allen was built. The project includes restoration of two Civil War cannons and a wrought-iron fence, along with improvements to lighting, landscaping and a bandstand.

The fort was built to protect Portland Harbor. Purchased by the city in 1890, it now contains a Civil War monument, the USS Maine Memorial Cannon, the USS Portland Memorial, the Arctic Campaign Memorial and the 9/11 Memorial.

The Davis Family Foundation was established by H. Halsey and Phyllis C. Davis of Falmouth to support educational, medical, cultural and arts organizations, primarily in Maine.

 

Police charge local man with aggravated assault

A Portland man was charged with aggravated assault Sunday morning after he punched and kicked another man, breaking bones in the victim’s face, police said.

Police were called to Elm and Oxford streets at 11:50 a.m. for a report of a fight. When they arrived, they found a 38-year-old man who had been injured. He was taken to Maine Medical Center for treatment.

Police found Kaysean Moss, 39, of Portland nearby and arrested him on charges of aggravated assault, police said.

 

USM instructor plans to join 15 others in race for mayor

Ralph Carmona, vice chair of the city’s Democratic Party, is joining 15 other candidates for mayor.

Carmona, who is also an instructor at the University of Southern Maine, plans to announce formally on Wednesday.

That will make him one of 16 candidates to register with the city, a step that allows them to raise money and set up campaign organizations.

Candidates can begin taking out petitions to gather signatures for a place on the ballot on Friday. Those petitions can be returned in the latter half of August.

 

Rees will start position as city manager July 20

Mark Rees, selected earlier this month as the new city manager, will start his new job on July 20.

City officials said Rees was able to get an early release from his contract as town manager of North Andover, Mass. His contract there called for 90 days’ notice, which would have kept him there through August.

He wraps up his work in North Andover on June 30, Rees said.

The Portland City Council officially named Rees city manager June 6.

 

Preble Street presents awards to volunteers

Preble Street honored Hannaford with its Community Partner Award recently for its volunteer efforts in providing meals and donations.

The Joseph D. Kreisler Community Impact Award went to Lucky Hollander of Portland. Hollander has dedicated her career to the prevention of child abuse and neglect.

Lynne Goodwin of Portland, a volunteer of more than eight years, was named Volunteer of the Year.

Preble Street serves 500,000 meals per year to those in need. The awards were presented at the center’s annual meeting last week.

LEVANT

Swerving to avoid turtle, woman rolls her car over

A woman driving on a rural road in Levant suffered only minor injuries after rolling her car when she swerved to avoid a turtle.

Maine State Police told the Bangor Daily News that 21-year-old Ashley Savoy of Levant swerved to avoid the turtle on Horseback Road early Sunday morning. The vehicle’s back window was smashed.

Turtles in roadways are common at this time of the year as females migrate to nesting areas.