PERU

Man charged with domestic violence after standoff

A Peru man was charged with two counts of domestic violence following a standoff with police Sunday morning at his home on Route 108.

Corey Taylor, 40, was arrested at about 4:30 a.m. Sunday at his home after a standoff with police, said Stephen McCausland, spokesman for the Maine Department of Public Safety. A Maine State Police tactical team was called to the scene at about midnight, McCausland said. McCausland said Taylor had threatened a family member Saturday evening but no one was hurt.

Taylor is being held at Oxford County Jail.

CAPE ELIZABETH

Home receives significant damage in early morning fire

Fire heavily damaged a single-story ranch style home at 10 Crescent View Ave. in Cape Elizabeth on Sunday morning.

Fire Chief Peter Gleason said a neighbor spotted the fire and reported it about 4 a.m.

The home, which was undergoing renovation, was unoccupied. The name of the owner was not immediately available.

Gleason said about 35 firefighters responded to the scene. He said the home received significant damage. No one was hurt.

The cause of the fire is being investigated by the State Fire Marshal’s Office. Gleason said the cause of the blaze is not suspicious.

PORTLAND

Power outages occur in Portland and Falmouth

Thousands of Central Maine Power Co. customers in Portland and Falmouth lost power Sunday afternoon, but it was restored in less than two hours.

CMP said electricity was restored around 4:23 p.m. to an estimated 6,300 customers in Portland’s Deering neighborhood and Falmouth.

A dispatcher said it appears the outage was caused by a fire at the company’s Bishop Street substation in Portland. The power went out about 2:45 p.m.

The power outage knocked out street lights in the area, causing some minor traffic problems.

In a separate outage, CMP reported that 330 customers in Portland and Falmouth – only three live in Falmouth – lost power around 6 p.m. The cause of that outage was under investigation.

FORT KENT

Sled dog teams stay on track in grueling, 250-mile race

All 18 teams that set out on a grueling, 250-mile sled dog race across the wilderness of northern Maine remained on course Sunday.

Organizers of the Can-Am Crown race said Sunday that seven teams have a substantial lead and the five lead teams are packed within half an hour of one another. Can-Am organization president Beurmond Banville said he expects the winner will cross the finish line in Fort Kent before dawn Monday.

No one had dropped out of the race by midday Sunday.

The mushers Sunday morning left a logging camp on western Maine’s boundary with Quebec and were headed for the Allagash Valley 50 miles away for a mandatory layover.

“It’s a very close race at this point,” Banville said. “There’s no clear-cut leader.”

Participants include the winner of the last two races, Ryan Anderson of Ray, Minn., along with three-time winner Don Hibbs of Millinocket, four-time winner Martin Masicotte of St. Tite, Quebec, and past winner Bruce Langmaid of Blackstock, Ontario.

The race is billed as the longest and highest-caliber race in the eastern United States. It is a qualifier for Alaska’s Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.

Two Massachusetts mushers won the 30-mile and 60-mile Can-Am races. Rico Portalatin of Westhampton, Mass. won the 60-mile race with a time of 5 hours, 53 minutes. Amy deWolski of Millbury, Mass. won the 30-mile leg with a time of 2 hours, 36 minutes.

AUGUSTA

Consortium for Bycatch Reduction nets award

Several New England groups are part of a consortium that’s being honored for its efforts to reduce unintended bycatch of species like sea turtles, whales and seals.

The Consortium for Bycatch Reduction has won the Katerva Award in Ecosystem Conservation, which is given to projects that promote sustainability. Among the groups in the consortium are the Maine Lobstermen’s Association, the New England Aquarium and the University of New Hampshire.

Bycatch is a term that refers to fish netted unintentionally while trolling for targeted species.

The consortium has created an online database of bycatch reduction techniques to educate others of the efforts. It also tests technology to reduce bycatch, like eletromagnetic repellents on fish hooks that help ensure sharks and rays are not at risk.

PORTSMOUTH, N.H.

Bridge between Maine, N.H. closing overnight this week

The Memorial Bridge that connects New Hampshire and Maine is closing overnights for a week to continue adjustments.

The bridge will be off-limits to cars, bikes and pedestrians from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. every night from Sunday through Friday.

The closure is needed to continue the work on final adjustments on the new bridge, which have been slowed due to the winter weather conditions.

– From staff and news services