Mask mandates / Private Maine islands / Maine fair vaccinations

Today is Monday. Temperatures will top out in the mid-70s for most of the state. Thunderstorms are likely in southern Maine as Tropical Depression Henri lingers, with isolated storms possible farther north. Here’s what we’re talking about in Maine today.

The latest on the coronavirus in Maine

Two more Mainers have died and another 205 coronavirus cases were reported across the state on Saturday, according to the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The death toll now stands at 924.

The company that runs a Maine factory making a widely used rapid test for COVID-19 disputed a Friday report in the New York Times saying it destroyed millions of the tests in June and July as the pandemic waned and vaccinated people no longer required them.

See if your school has a mask mandate for students

We have compiled a growing list of districts statewide and their mask policies. This information will be updated as more districts make decisions and policies shift, as they have in the previous year.

A desire for rural living and cheaper housing likely led people away from Bangor

Bangor lost nearly 1,300 residents between 2010 and 2020, the largest numerical drop of any Maine community during that 10-year period. Yet many communities just outside of Bangor saw growth, with Hermon growing by more than 1,000 people, Orono adding more than 800 and Hampden adding more than 400. Carmel saw 73 people move in, giving it a population of nearly 2,900.

5 private Maine islands you can own for less than $1 million

Back in 2018, we published a list of five private Maine islands for sale for less than $500,000. 

Times have changed since then and real estate prices have gone up considerably.

Vaccine clinics at Maine fairs aren’t giving many shots. They’re still changing minds.

Craig Moore knew he had to get his COVID-19 vaccine soon. He was not expecting it to happen at the fair.

Foundation wants to turn Rockland street into an artist campus

An arts foundation has taken ownership of a bulk of the street where it’s headquartered in order to move forward with building a small campus where artists will live and work.

What we know about masking policies for schools in the midcoast for the 2021-22 school year

Some school boards, including the Belfast-based Regional School Unit 71, have not yet voted on the matter.

WWII pilot from Millinocket missing in action for 75 years will be buried with military honors

Second Lt. Ernest Vienneau, who served in the U.S. Army Air Forces, will be buried on Oct. 9, escorted by members of the American Legion.

Maine’s only climbing gym north of Portland due to open in Trenton

A couple from Mount Desert Island is hoping to finish construction of Maine’s third dedicated indoor climbing facility and open by the start of December.

In other Maine news

Wrong-way driver injures woman in Falmouth

Construction worker seriously injured when struck by SUV in Saco

Maine CDC investigating gastrointestinal illness outbreak at Ellsworth campground