Maine News Updates

Welcome to the Sunrise Herald, with Giselle Goodman, the place to go to get the news from overnight and onward...

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IN THE WEATHER:

SUNRISE: 5:09 a.m. SUNSET: 8:07 p.m.

At 9 a.m., it was 70 degrees in downtown Portland.

How
about that heat? Portland broke itself a record yesterday when it
reached a high temp of 91. It breaks the old high temperature for the
day, last recorded in 1992 at 87 degrees.

Another record breaker
today? Only time will tell.  Warm, yes, and a bit less gusty. But  the
stretch of summer-esque temps ends tonight. A cold front dumps in
overnight, bringing with us cooler temperatures, and chances of rain
tomorrow.

THE SUNRISE HERALD WEATHER WATCHERS REPORT:

• Bill in Rockland says: A very few high thin clouds mar
  the perfect blue. There's no wind and the temperature is 49 degrees at
  5:30 this morning. I'm told this is the start of a gorgeous Holiday
  weekend. It would be nice, indeed honorable, if everybody would take at
  the very least a moment to
  remember those who have sacrificed for us and whose memory we honor on Monday.

• Mark in Brunswick says: We have a very mild 58 degrees this morning in Brunswick with a high, thin layer of clouds above us.
  

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ON THE ROAD:

HERE WE GO!!
I am wicked excited to write about the annual Memorial Day ritual of
people returning to Maine for the summer.  Only because of the summer
part. The traffic, not so much. Here are some things you might want to
know about the weekend, as traffic AND enforcement steps up.

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• IN LEWISTON: The
  Police Department plans to conduct multiple OUI (operating under the
  influence) checkpoints throughout the city, all weekend long. The city
  has not released the locations of the checkpoints. Obviously. That
  would kind of be counterproductive.
• FROM THE STATE POLICE:
  Additional troopers and watchdogs will be on the roads this weekend,
  keeping an eye out for speeders, erratic and/or and drunk drivers. The
  department will be using a plane to check speeds along the turnpike.
  But its not just speeders who should think twice. Police are also
  engaged in a massive crackdown of people who are not wearing their
  seatbelt. So click it, or get a ticket.
• ON I-295: The
  Maine Department of Transportation will make it a little easier to
  navigate some of the asphalt waters for the expected traffic. The good
  news: Construction work on I-295 northbound is suspended Friday and
  Saturday. Work will resume Sunday, according to the Maine Department of
  Transportation. The bad news: Some lanes will remain closed.

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ON THE OCEAN:

A
southwestern wind blows 10 to 15 knots with gusts up to 20 knots.
Later, the wind, which is carrying colder temperatures will switch from
the north. Seas 3 to 5 feet.

IN PORTLAND: High tide at 9:51 a.m. and 10:03 p.m. Low tide at 3:57 p.m.

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IN THE NEWS:

WASHINGTON
-- The state's Department of Education has agreed to pay the U.S.
government $1.5 million for falsely reporting the number of migrant
children being served in the state of Maine, according to a press
release issued by the U.S. Department of Justice's public affairs
office.

The inaccurate numbers led to the state getting more
money from the U.S. Department of Education's Migrant Education
Program. That program provides funds to states to educate and meet the
special needs of migrant children nationwide.

The release does
not specify the number of kids the state misreported; the inaccurate
reports were made during fiscal years 2002, 2003 and 2004.

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SOUTH
PORTLAND -- The U.S. Coast Guard last night rescued an inexperienced
kayaker who became disoriented during his first ocean-paddling trip.

Jason
Munley, 31, of Pittsburgh, was picked up by a Coast Guard helicopter
from Burnt Porcupine Island (among the cluster of Acadian islands).
According to the Coast Guard, Munley is an experienced river kayaker,
but had had very little ocean experience. Regardless, on Thursday
morning, he set out on his first ocean kayaking trip - 10.5 miles from
Hancock Point to Bar Harbor.

When he did not arrive in Bar
Harbor at the expected hour of 6:30 p.m., a group of friends he was
camping with in a local cottage became concerned. Munley was wearing a
life jacket and was carrying a light, but had no
means of communication and was not carrying any food or water.

Around
10 p.m., after searching for Munley for a time, the friends flagged
down and notified a 47-foot motor lifeboat crew from Coast Guard
Station Southwest Harbor, which happened to be in the area on a routine
patrol. Another guard boat, and a helicopter from Boston were
dispatched to the search area.

The motor lifeboat crew spotted
Munley’s light near Burnt Porcupine Island around 11:30 p.m., but
couldn’t get the boat close enough to rescue him, so the helicopter
crew flew in and lifted him off  the island.

“We’re all really
relieved that he’s safe and that his friends knew where to look,” Petty
Officer 1st Class Tim Sperry, of the Sector Northern New England
Command Center, said in a statement. “We encourage every mariner to
always wear a life jacket and leave a float plan with someone on shore,
but it’s just as important to have a means of communication with you.
If something goes wrong and you don’t have a way to let anyone know, no
one may realize you’re in trouble until it's too late.”

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BATH -- A special visitor will be at Bath Iron Works today to attend a ceremony for the destroyer recently built there. 

The
shipyard will welcome Defense Secretary Robert Gates, says U.S. Sen.
Susan Collins. She will accompany Gates to the pre-commissioning
ceremony for the Bath-built USS Wayne E. Meyer (DDG-108). The
ship was christened in October. The event today is in preperation for
the  "commissioning" ceremony, planned for October of this year.
Commisioning ceremonies are major Naval celebrations that officially
place ships into active duty.

Collins, a member of the Senate
Armed Services Committee, says the Secretary  will meet with BIW
employees before attending the celebration.
 
“Bath Iron Works is
an extraordinary asset to the U.S. Navy and I am delighted to have
Secretary Gates tour the yard,” Collins said in a statement.  “I know
he will be impressed not only with the infrastructure improvements that
have allowed BIW to become even more productive, but also with the
dedicated men and women who work there.  This is their opportunity to
show the Secretary why Bath-built is truly best-built.”

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WATERVILLE -- A Shawmut man died in the city Wednesday afternoon
after the motorcycle he was riding clipped a vehicle at the
intersection of Oak Street and College Avenue and he was ejected onto
the road, police said.

David Goldsmith, 31, was taken by Delta
Ambulance to MaineGeneral Medical Center, Thayer Campus, where he was
pronounced dead, said investigating officer Steve Brame. Goldsmith was
not wearing a helmet, Brame said.

“Contributing factors were
unsafe passing and speed,” Brame said. “There were no skid marks, so
we’re not sure how fast (Goldsmith) was going.”

The
accident was reported around 12:45 p.m. Alton McClamma, 75, of Embden,
was driving a van with his wife
inside as a passenger, Brame said. Goldsmith, riding a Kawasaki 730
motorcycle, followed behind McClamma, who was driving at slow speeds,
Brame said.

When
Goldsmith attempted to pass the van  he struck the corner of the
vehicle and was ejected over the handle bars; the motorcycle crashed
into a parked vehicle, Brame said.

Brame estimated Goldsmith was thrown 30 feet or so, landing on the pavement.

McClamma and his wife were not injured, Brame said, and no charges were filed in the incident.

Information provided by Central Maine Newspapers.

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SOUTH BERWICK (AP) -- Police in South Berwick, Maine, say
they've caught up with a man who swam across a river to New Hampshire
to avoid arrest earlier this month.

Authorities say instead of pulling over for police on May 7,
29-year-old Jeffrey Hillsgrove jumped out of his van, ran into the
woods and then swam across the Salmon Falls River to Rollinsford, N.H.
Police lost track of him until Tuesday, when they got an anonymous tip.

Foster's Daily Democrat says Hillsgrove was arrested at his home and
charged with driving with a suspended license and violating conditions
of his release on an earlier charge.

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FYI:

Now that we've talked about some of the money going out of Maine (see above) let's talk about some of the money coming in...

• The state is getting a $6 million grant for
  public safety. The federal grant according to the governor's office,
  will support multi-jurisdictional drug task force efforts and other law
  enforcement and criminal justice efforts. 

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