Janet Mills

When an explosion destroyed a building, killed a firefighter and injured seven more people Monday in Farmington, Maine, it battered a local fire department with a tight-knit “brotherhood” and family ties that run deep. Captain Michael Bell was killed in the blast, while his brother, Farmington Fire Chief Terry Bell, remained in critical condition Tuesday night. So did Captain Scott...

After 18 years of proudly hoisting the Stars and Stripes every Tuesday, three Maine women have ended their flag-waving tradition that began after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Several hundred people joined Elaine Greene, Joann Miller and Carmen Foote on Wednesday to support the trio known as the “Freeport flag ladies.”

Stephen Pelton’s EcoSmart Home Services in Berlin, Connecticut, expanded into installing rooftop solar panels about eight years ago, an outgrowth of work making houses more energy efficient. But now that the state is discontinuing one of its solar incentives, he is worried. A change in the way that utility customers are compensated for the excess energy that they generate is...

A bill to end Maine’s religious and philosophical exemptions to vaccines is heading to the governor’s desk. The Senate voted 19-16 Thursday to enact the bill. Gov. Janet Mills’ administration has backed the bill ending non-medical vaccine opt-outs by 2021 for schoolchildren, as well as nursery school and health care facility employees.

As several thousand people including firefighters from across the nation gathered to honor the life of one of their own, a fire chief in attendance suffered a medical emergency and later died. Maine Gov. Janet Mills says Oxford Fire Chief Gary Sacco died after attending Sunday’s funeral for Berwick Fire Capt. Joel Barnes. Mills says Sacco “lost his life while...