Our overnight temperature (interior #YorkCounty #Maine) was -10°F / -23.33°C. Not a record, but it was pretty damn cold!

#MaineWx #ExtremeCold #ArcticBlast #ClimateDiaryMaine

When #Maine #WarmingCenters can’t keep up with demand: ‘We are tasked with life and death decisions’

Advocates say #overnight facilities are essential in Maine, but services are limited and it is increasingly difficult to meet the need in communities, including those in #YorkCounty.

by Gillian Graham, January 11, 2026

BIDDEFORD — "Vassie Fowler feels a heavy burden when the doors of the warming center open.

"On the top floor of a former church, more than 50 homeless people unfold antigravity chairs and blankets to settle in and try to sleep each night. On evenings when temperatures dip into the single digits, the center will squeeze in up to 60.
But Seeds of Hope can’t make room for everyone.

" 'We know if we say no, there’s no other option for people,' said Fowler, executive director of the nonprofit on South Street. 'We are tasked with what feels like life and death decisions.'

"Advocates for the homeless population say warming centers are essential in Maine, where it can be dangerous and deadly to go unsheltered during winter months. But in a state with limited services, they say it is increasingly difficult to meet the need in many communities, including those in #YorkCounty, where there are no spots at overnight facilities for most of the hundreds of people who are homeless.
In September, Gov. Janet Mills and MaineHousing announced $2.3 million in grants to support 12 emergency warming centers across the state this winter in Bangor, Portland, Ellsworth, Presque Isle, Waterville, Lewiston, Biddeford, Sanford, Augusta and Brunswick.

"Some, like Seeds of Hope, are open every night.

"Others are more restricted: Portland only opens its shelter when the temperature is below 15 degrees or more than 10 inches of snow are expected; and in Sanford, the only center has 16 beds and is limited to families with children.

"People who are unsheltered in Sanford feel helpless and discouraged, said Rebecca Jackson, co-founder of It Takes a Village 207, a nonprofit that provides support and resources to people in the city.

" 'When temperatures reach dangerously low levels, access to warmth is not a luxury — it is a matter of survival,' Jackson said. 'Without accessible, low-barrier places to warm up, people are left with impossible choices that put their health and lives at risk.'

[...]

"On Wednesday afternoon, 28-year-old Brooke Paul huddled near a doorway at a shopping plaza in downtown Sanford. She said she has been homeless for six years and sleeps in a tent in the woods near a walking trail.

"During the day, she tries to warm up by going into local businesses until she is asked to leave. At night, she layers her clothes and uses as many blankets as she can.

" 'The other night was freezing. It sucks,' she said. She wishes there was a nearby warming center.

" 'Why wouldn’t there be?' she said."

Read more:
https://www.pressherald.com/2026/01/11/when-maine-warming-centers-cant-keep-up-with-demand-we-are-tasked-with-life-and-death-decisions/

Archived version:
https://archive.md/6zqQD

@newsbot

#Unhoused #Homeless #Houseless #ArcticBlast #PolarVortex #ExtremeCold #OvernightShelters #WarmingShelters #WarmingSheltersInMaine

Hype for the Future 64L: More on York County, Maine

https://novatopflex.wordpress.com/2026/01/03/hype-for-the-future-64l-more-on-york-county-maine/

Hype for the Future 64I: Cumberland County, Maine (Portland Vicinity)

https://novatopflex.wordpress.com/2026/01/03/hype-for-the-future-64i-cumberland-county-maine-portland-vicinity/

Hype for the Future 64H: Northern York County, Maine

Overview

The northern and inland portion of York County, Maine, represents the overall earliest inland settlements associated with the modern State of Maine, such as Sanford and Waterboro further north. Within the central portion of the Town of Waterboro is the Taylor/Frey/Leavitt House Museum, while within the City of Sanford is the Oldtimer’s Shop.

#Mainers! Here's your chance to help fight #EmeraldAshBorer!

#MaineForestryService - Emerald Ash Borer (Agrilus planipennis) Update

September 22, 2025

"Since 2019, MFS has been releasing parasitoid wasps for the long-term management of emerald ash borer (#EAB) in the forests of Maine. These are tiny, non-stinging members of the order Hymenoptera, and they specialize in EAB. In most cases, they will not keep the mature trees already in the forest alive, but there is evidence from other states that have had EAB longer than we have that these #wasps provide protection to the seedlings and saplings as they grow. We are attempting to release them in as many areas with EAB as possible so that they can eventually spread throughout the state, allowing ash to remain in #Maine’s forests.

"As of 2025, we have released these #parasitoids in 20 sites throughout the range of EAB. Of the ten sites that are at the stage where we can start monitoring for their establishment, we have recovered one or both of Spathius or Tetrastichus at five of them: four in #YorkCounty and one in northern #Aroostook. We are still years away from actual control of EAB, but it is encouraging to start recovering parasitoids.

"With the many new detections of EAB in Maine in recent years, we would like to establish new biological control release sites. The ash-dominated forests that serve as release sites can be public or privately owned. Many of our cooperators are private woodlot owners. Ideally, we would like to ship biological control directly to a local landowner or manager and have them conduct releases after training by MFS. The releases take 5-15 minutes, 4-6 times a summer for two summers. We are looking for new release sites in areas where EAB has recently become established. Specifically, we would like to find sites in or near #BarHarborME, #SolonME, #BelfastME, the #BathME / #BrunswickME area, #CoastalMaine south of #PortlandME, and #WesternMaine west of #LewistonME. If you have forested land in one of these areas and are potentially interested in having it become a biological release site, please review the guidelines and information about EAB biocontrol available on-line, and email foresthealth @ maine . gov (no spaces) with the town in which your ash stand is, the approximate acreage of ash, and the coordinates (approximate is fine) of the stand. If it looks like your land would be suitable for a biological control site, we will reach out to you."

Source:
Emailed newsletter

Link to guidelines (PDF):
https://www.maine.gov/dacf/mfs/forest_health/invasive_threats/eab/documents/meeting-082020/Emerald%20Ash%20Borer%20Biocontrol%20Info%20For%20Potential%20Cooperators.pdf

#InvasiveSpecies #AshTrees #SaveTheForests #ProtectTheSacred #Wabanaki #Basketry #SolarPunkSunday #Biocontrol

Important story for those who oppose unrestricted access to ARs in the US. This massacre hits all of the GOP soft spots.
Rural area.
Cops trying to stop a stalker, murdered in ambush despite wearing armor.
Attacker w/ AR + “suppressor” hunted down officers.

No current laws would stop the shooter from doing what he did. The PD did everything right. So how might we actually “Back the Blue” and keep them safer?

https://www.wgal.com/article/pa-officers-killed-matthew-ruth-motive-how-deadly-shootout-happened-york-county/67952344 #YorkCounty #shooting #guns