Local News

One body was found and Coast Guard crews, other local agencies and fishermen were searching by air and sea for a second person in Cobscook Bay on Thursday morning, March 26, after a 34-foot fishing vessel from Roque Bluffs with two people aboard sank Wednesday afternoon, March 25.

"Deer Islanders -- we're just shocked," says Joyce Stuart, the chairman of the West Isles Local Service District committee, about the plan to reduce ferry service to the island to only one vessel for a four and a half month period each year.

The controversy surrounding the harvesting of rockweed in Cobscook Bay that stayed on the back burner during the winter months is beginning to heat up as the 2009 harvest season approaches.

The port of Eastport will be handling shipments of windmill blades around the end of April or the first part of May, with other shipments possible. The 108 blades, each 125 feet long, are being shipped from Brazil by General Electric for a project in Maine.

The Washington County Emergency Medical Services Authority (WCEMSA) presented a draft proposal to retain the City of Calais at a March 4 meeting of member communities.

The Domtar shutdown for an indefinite period will directly affect approximately 90 people at the port of Eastport, including close to 50 longshoremen and about 30 truck drivers, along with tugboat crews, harbor pilots and office staff.