ALFRED

Motorcyclist dies in crash with car; passenger hurt

A New Hampshire man was killed Friday in a crash involving a motorcycle and a car on Route 111.

The accident happened just after 4:30 p.m., when a woman driving a 2010 Chevrolet Equinox turned left onto Route 111 as a motorcycle with two people on it headed west on the road, said state police Trooper Kevin Rooney.

The driver of the motorcycle, Shane McCarthy, 45, of Lee, N.H., was killed in the crash, Rooney said.

The woman who was riding with him, Lezlie Perham, 41, of Lee, N.H., was taken to Maine Medical Center in Portland with abdominal and chest injuries.

The driver of the Equinox, Laurie Boyce, 59, of Alton, N.H., sustained a minor hand injury.

The police investigation of the accident will include inspection of the vehicles and blood alcohol analysis.

SOUTH PORTLAND

Red’s will be razed, rebuilt;likely will open next spring

The remains of Red’s Dairy Freeze on Cottage Road will be demolished Monday morning to make way for a new structure.
The building was heavily damaged by an electrical fire on May 16.

The best-case scenario is for Red’s to reopen for two to three weeks this year, once construction is complete, said John Harvey, who represents Red’s owner Chris Bolling in his insurance claim.

Most likely, he said, the ice cream stand won’t open until next season.

The new building will be much the same, but with bathrooms to comply with the American Disabilities Act.

PORTLAND

Container ship service eligible for federal funds

The container ship service that operates between Portland, Boston and New York has received a designation that makes it eligible for federal funding.

The service operating from Portland’s International Marine Terminal has been selected as one of eight projects nationwide to take part in the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Marine Highway Program.

The Maine Port Authority hopes to deploy a new vessel for the container service.

The container feeder service, which now uses a tug and barge, has been running without subsidy between Portland, Boston and the Port of New York/New Jersey since 1995.

St. Joseph’s giving officersa discount on Web courses

Portland police are teaming up with St. Joseph’s College in Standish so officers can take courses online at a discount.

The college’s online Division of Graduate & Professional Studies will waive application fees and give officers a $50-per-course tuition discount, the city and the college said Thursday.

“Continuing education keeps us current and contemporary as an organization,” said Police Chief James Craig. The college offers a range of courses, including criminal justice, and students can earn bachelor’s and master’s degrees.

BOSTON

Unusually high prices boost Northeast fishing industry

Early results for Northeast fishermen who are working under a major rules change show that their catch is down 10 percent, but revenue is up 17 percent.

The relatively stable numbers for the first three months of the fishing year, May to July, are cause for cautious optimism, said Patricia Kurkul, regional fisheries chief for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Under the new system, fishermen work in groups to manage an allotted catch. Fishermen have complained that they aren’t being allowed to catch enough fish to stay in business.

Jackie Odell of the Northeast Seafood Coalition, said many fishermen aren’t even fishing yet because their catch allotments are so low. But she said unusually high prices have boosted the industry so far this year.

BANGOR

Bus driver to be arraigned in robbery of Orono bank

A Greyhound bus driver who is a suspect in 10 bank robberies in four New England states has been indicted on federal bank robbery charges.

The Bangor Daily News said Robert Ferguson, 47, of Lowell, Mass., is due to be arraigned Monday in U.S. District Court in Bangor on charges that he robbed a bank in Orono last month.

The FBI had offered a reward for help catching the suspect in at least 10 bank robberies in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut and New Hampshire. The FBI dubbed the suspect the “burly bandit” because of his stocky build.

Officials have not publicly said they believe Ferguson is the burly bandit, but he has been charged in Rhode Island with one of the robberies attributed to the suspect.

MONMOUTH

Maine’s apple orchards seeing light, early harvests

Maine apple orchards are seeing light but early harvests this year.

Some apple harvesting already is under way, a week or more earlier than is customary, said Renae Moran an educator and fruit tree specialist with the University of Maine Cooperative Extension.

“I’m starting to see it with the early varieties and I think it’s going to happen with Macintosh,” said Moran. “Spring was three weeks early and a lot of orchards have a light crop because of the freeze” in late spring.

– From staff and news services

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