PORTLAND

Hannaford robber takes unknown amount of cash

A man dressed in black robbed the Hannaford at 295 Forest Ave. at 1:13 p.m. Saturday, the Portland Police Department reported.

The man was of medium height and build, and he wore a black pullover jacket, dark or black pants, a black watch cap with a white band at the bottom, brown boots and a blue scarf-like material over his face, said Portland Officer Mark Keller.

The report described the man as “light-skinned,” police said.

It was unknown if the man had a weapon when he demanded cash and left with an undetermined amount of money, Keller said.

“He approached the service desk and demanded money, which I imagine means there was the threat of a weapon, but there is no information about the weapon,” Keller said.

The robbery was still under investigation at 5:45 p.m.

BOSTON

Free ice-rink admission kicks off ‘Frozen Fenway’ events

Mayor Thomas Menino is hosting a free New Year’s Day skate at a city landmark more associated with green grass and summer breezes.

Today, residents will get to take a spin on an ice rink built at Fenway Park. The event kicks off “Frozen Fenway” celebrations, which run until Jan. 16 and feature several hockey games between local high school and college teams, including Northeastern University and Boston College.

The rink covers the area between first and third base and extends slightly into the outfield at Fenway, which celebrates its 100th anniversary in 2012.

The Boston Red Sox’s famous home has hosted skating on New Year’s Day once before, when the Boston Bruins played the Philadelphia Flyers in 2010.

PORTSMOUTH, N.H.

Drop in jobless claims leads to state employee layoffs

New Hampshire’s latest unemployment rate is 5.2 percent, one of the lowest rates in the country. But part of that percentage includes people who work at the unemployment office.

Tara Reardon, commissioner of New Hampshire’s Department of Employment Security, told the Portsmouth Herald that the federally funded agency is laying off 53 full-time employees and 19 part-time workers across the state.

Reardon said that the notices went out during the past week and that they’ll be effective Jan. 13. She said that’s a $3 million savings over the year.

The layoffs come as New Hampshire experiences a 30-percent decline in unemployment claims compared to 18 months ago. Reardon said that’s good as far as the economy goes, but bad for her agency because its funding falls as unemployment claims drop.

— From staff and news services