Bangor, Maine News Update: February 6, 2020

With storms crossing the state for the end of the week, several schools and services have already canceled or declared early dismissals. Our list of cancellations, which will be updated throughout the day, can be found at WDEA dot am.

Drug agents seized more than 140 thousand dollars' worth of fentanyl as the result of a traffic stop. Police found Hunter York in possession of the drug and two firearms, obtained a warrant and searched his apartment, and seized more fentanyl, ecstasy tablets, and 15 thousand in cash.

Animal control officers in the Bath area are considering setting up live traps for foxes, euthanizing the ones that are caught, after a possibly rabid fox attacked two people and several pets in Phippsburg. The trapping strategy is unconventional, but they want to stop the spread of rabies after at least 10 people were attacked in the last 13 months.

The Hogan Road area in Bangor will be getting some new sidewalks this summer, in the area around the Mount Hope Avenue intersection. In addition, the city plans to put up pedestrian crossing lights at Haskell Road, Mount Hope Avenue, and Eastern Maine Community College. Eighty percent of the 300 thousand dollar project is being federally funded, with the rest of the money coming from the city.

A new room at Northern Light Eastern Maine Medical Center will give families with sick children a place to relax, cook, do laundry, and just get a respite from the hospital's clinical environment. The Ronald McDonald room held its grand opening yesterday, and will remain open 24 hours a day.

Eastern Maine Community College has expanded its on-campus food pantry, which has grown from a small corner shelf, to an area that includes a fridge and freezer, and even offers toiletries. Organizers say the hope is to give students one less thing to worry about so they can concentrate on learning.

A Belfast shoe store is getting a lot of attention, but not because it’s Maine’s oldest, owned by the Horne family since 1832. The current fame comes from the owner’s decision to set up a pay what you can rack at the Colburn Shoe Store, offering new shoes to anyone who needs them, for whatever price they can afford to pay.