Fire Dept. Auction is August 19th

(Lamoine) — The annual Lamoine Fire Department Auction will be held on Friday, August 19, 2005 at 6:00 PM at the Lamoine School. Preview and refreshments will start at 5:00 PM.

The auctioneer again this year is Chas Hare of Stockton Springs. Firefighters are in the process of collecting goods and services for the auction. The event is one of the largest fundraisers of the year for the fire department, and proceeds are used to purchase firefighting and rescue equipment to supplement the town budget.

Mutual Aid Renewed

(Lamoine) - The Selectmen and Fire Chief Skip Smith signed a renewal agreement on the Hancock County Firefighters Association mutual aid agreement. The contract allows Lamoine to get help from any Hancock County Town for a major fire event, and also allows other towns to call on the Lamoine Department. The updated agreement is seen as a way to help provide adequate fire coverage for small towns.

Department of Labor Fines Town FD

(Lamoine) — The Selectmen and Fire Department have filed an appeal to a number of violations of record keeping rules cited by the Maine Bureau of Labor Standards. An inspector found inadequate training records for firefighters trained to fight interior fires and for airpack maintenance. A total of seven finable citations at $700 each resulted in a $4,900 fine.

In the reply to the Department of Labor, the Town promised to impose fixes by the August 12th deadline, and asked for a waiver of the fine totals.

Firefighters Buy New Pole

(Lamoine) — The flag pole at Forest Hill Cemetery (next to the Lamoine Baptist Church) rusted out after about 30-years of service, and one day the pulleys that held the flags up came off and the flags fell to the ground. The Lamoine Volunteer Fire Department has maintained the flags which fly over the lots of two Revolutionary War Era soldiers.

The department purchased a new pole from World of Flags in Milo. Contractor Jay Fowler removed the old pole setting and dug the hole for the new pole. Fire Chief Skip Smith arranged to get the right material to set the pole into the ground, and Captain Jerry Jordan arranged for the crew to set things straight.

The department met its goal of having the new flag pole and flags in place for the Memorial Day holiday. It's hope the new, fiberglass pole will last another 30-years. The project was funded privately and cost about $1,365.00

Lets Run It Up the Flagpole

From left Jerry Jordan, Joe Young, Jim Carney & Kermit Theall install a new flagpole at Forest Hill Cemetery

Open House Is A Hit

Over 100 people toured the Lamoine Fire Station and got a close-up look at the new rescue truck in May. The second annual open house saw excellent attendance on a windy, rainy Sunday afternoon. Fire Department members served up grilled food and ran out of some items. The department is looking forward to the annual auction on August 19th.

Fire Pond Checked

(Lamoine) — Firefighters checked the integrity of the hydrant at the pond across the road from Chief Skip Smith's house. The pond still provides a good water source in the event of a major fire, but some gravel got into the tanker truck recently causing some costly damage to the pump. No visible signs of problems were found in the pond. Below, diver Brett Jones is aided by Carlton Johnson & John Karst

Otis Teen Critically Injured in Lamoine Wreck

(Lamoine) — Lamoine's firefighters knew it was bad when the fire pagers pierced their sleep at 5:10AM on May 14th—the dispatcher at the Hancock RCC reported a 10-55 PI (auto accident with personal injury). On arrival they found a compact car had run into a tree and a teen-aged boy was trapped on the passenger's side. Within seconds the rescue jaws and cutters went into action to get Matthew Peasley of Otis free and into the ambulance. It was the first real test of the tool bought a couple years ago with donations and tax money combined. While several firefighters worked to remove the metal that pinned Peasley's legs, others set up a landing zone for the LifeFlight helicopter at Lamoine Beach. County Ambulance crews assisted keeping Peasley breathing while the extrication took place. LifeFlight took Peasley to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor where he stayed for exactly a month and recovered from his life threatening injuries. His family reports that Matthew returned home on June 14th but faces a long rehabilitation for head and leg injuries.

Maine State Troopers are investigating the accident. Alex Wentworth of Ellsworth was reportedly driving the vehicle. Wentworth, Peasely and several others had apparently gone to Lamoine Beach to watch the sunrise after staying out most of the night. Police have not indicated how fast the vehicle was traveling, but said it looked as if the car went off the road, the driver cut the wheel too hard to get back on, and it went off the other side.

The accident occurred just about a week after several of the young people had participated in the Every 15 Minutes program at Ellsworth High School.

The Aftermath

The Toyota Avalon above smashed into a tree on Lamoine Beach Road as driver Alex Wentworth lost control. Wentworth's passenger Matthew Peasley was pinned inside the wreckage. Lamoine Firefighters used the new extrication tools to free Peasley so he could be transported by helicopter.

Asst. Chief Eng. Oliver Aids Rescue At Sea

(Lamoine) — Asst. Chief Engineer Maury Oliver, who played a key role in a February rescue of two women in Lamoine, aided in a rescue at sea while on board his merchant marine ship, the USNS Seay. The rescue took place May 8th off the Atlantic Coast. Oliver, the chief engineer of the Seay, was cited for “leadership and can-do performance” in the operation which located a missing sailboat and rescued one of the people who had gone into the water. Another victim did not survive.