Litter Cleanup Planned for May 13th

"Flat Top 5K" Opens Spring in Lamoine

Call Volume for Fire Department Continues to Rise

Town Officials begin NIMS Training

Firefighters Learn First Response/Aid

Town Meeting Approves Kiosk Funds

Dog Officers Certified, Deputy has Emergency Phone

Litter Cleanup Planned For May 13th

Once again this year Georgia Munsell has graciously agreed to coordinate the event and the volunteers, working with town staff and the Maine Department of Transportation to get all the necessary bags and safety items. The town has several orange vests for volunteers.

Munsell will coordinate which volunteers will pick up the many roads in town during the 2-to-3 hour event. Pickup trucks will come by to pick up the full bags of litter to take to the transfer station.

The cleanup helps to really make a difference in how nice the town looks. Though we didn't have much snow this winter to hide the roadside trash, the spring has revealed what looks to be significantly less trash in some places compared to previous years.

Mrs. Munsell says she hopes to help the town better recognize those who graciously volunteer their time this year.

The 2005 Litter Cleanup...

was quite damp as volunteers gathered at the town hall. Organizer Georgia Munsell is doing a sun dance for this year's date—May 13th at 8:30 AM

“Flat Top 5K” Opens Spring in Lamoine

(Lamoine) — Organizers of a road race in memory of former Harbor Master Bill Pinkham thought they'd get about 50-runners to run 5-kilometers in early April. They were off just a bit—over 250 people turned out to compete and show support for Bill's family. With prizes in numerous age categories awarded, the overall winner of the race was Erik McCarthy of Old Town in a time of 16:53. Susannah Beck of Sedgwick was the fastest woman on the course from Lamoine State Park to the School with a time of 18:02.

The Lamoine Parks Commission contacted runner Robin Emery of Lamoine with the idea after Bill's passing last July 4th. Emery and Tom Kirby of Ellsworth took the reins and put together a great race event. When handing out the prizes to the top finishers, runners applauded for another race next year. More pictures and full results are posted on Lamoine's website.

Call Volume for Fire Department Continues To Rise

Of the 19-calls received in the first quarter, 9 were for trees blown down in several wind storms. None of the trees caused any significant damage except to power lines.

Three motor vehicle accidents were reported, the most serious being a single car crash that pinned Lisa Clark of Lamoine in her jeep. Fire Department personnel used the rescue jaws to cut the door off, freeing Clark who was taken to the hospital but suffered only bruises. Three chimney fire calls came in; none caused any damage. A skidder at a wood cutting operation on Buttermilk Road caught fire. Firefighters put water on it to cool it down. Firefighters helped search for a lost child, who was quickly found at a neighbor's home. And on town meeting evening a Lamoine Beach Road resident called because their kitten was stuck in a tree. The homeowner was advised to put out some food.

More than 250 Runners and Walkers turned out for the 1st Flat Top 5K Road Race April 1st. Go to Race Page for More Pictures

Town Officials begin NIMS Training

(Lamoine) — One of the buzz words around communities for 2006 is NIMS. The acronym stands for National Incident Management System, and if a community expects to qualify for any disaster funding, it must become NIMS compliant.

Selectmen passed a resolve to adopt the NIMS system in late 2005, and several town officials who might play a key role in a disaster began taking the training offered through the Hancock County Emergency Management Agency.

The NIMS system outlines what a town should have in place to deal with most emergencies. Those taking the first round of training included Selectmen Richard Fennelly, Brett Jones and Cynthia Donaldson, Administrator/Asst. Fire Chief Stu Marckoon, and firefighters Joe Young, Mike Jordan, Matt Jordan and Kermit Theall. Several courses must be completed in the next year.

Working Against Time & Gravity

Fire Captain Ed Farnsworth readies the rescue tool to cut the door off a wrecked Jeep to free Lisa Clark of Lamoine. She was not badly hurt in the crash on February 2nd.

Firefighters Learn First Response/Aid

(Lamoine) — The fire department is better prepared to handle those emergency calls that come with injuries thanks to former resident Crystal (West) Roberts. Several members of the department attended a 6-week course put on by Roberts on basic first responder training.

The course is not intended to place the Lamoine Fire Department into a first responder mode which can greatly increase the number of calls for a department. Instead, members expressed interest in learning how to properly respond to people with injuries at accident scenes and other calls. The idea is to keep victims as stable as possible until County Ambulance crews can arrive from Ellsworth.

Several serious accident in 2005 prompted the request from firefighters for additional first aid training. Roberts said she was impressed by the number of people who participated in the course.

Town Meeting Approves Kiosk Funds

(Lamoine) - Lamoine voters approved funding for three kiosk style signs (see picture) to be constructed at the town's three park areas. The Parks Commission proposed the idea in the budget, but the budget committee only recommended one sign. An amendment on the floor of town meeting restored funding for all three. It's not known when the materials will be ordered for the signs the will be installed at Lamoine Beach, Bloomfield Park and Marlboro Beach some time in 2006.

Dog Officers Certified, Deputy has Emergency Phone

(Lamoine) — Both of Lamoine's Animal Control Officers received state certification late last year. Deputy John Karst has added a cell phone number for folks to call with animal emergencies (460-9694). John says he plans to produce a report on a quarterly basis to the Selectmen on animal control activity. Karst and Harry Lounder have handled several complaints in the past 9-months, mostly dogs running at large.