PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Emergency responders in Maine are at the scene of a large fire and explosion at a lumber mill in a small town in the state's scenic midcoast region where several people are injured.
Waldo County officials said Friday that they are considering the fire and explosion a “mass casualty event.” They said at least five people were injured as of midday but a full assessment was not complete.
The fire took place after the explosion at Robbins Lumber in Searsmont, a town of about 1,500 people about 95 miles (153 kilometers) from Portland, authorities said. Authorities said they are still investigating the cause of the blast.
“We have dumped all of the resources from the whole county over to that area,” Waldo County 911 director Mike Larrivee said.
Maine State Police and fire marshals are responding to the fire, state police spokesperson Shannon Moss said. Moss confirmed that there are injuries at the site but said she could not yet provide more details.
A call to Robbins Lumber was not immediately returned Friday. The company's website states that it has been a family-owned firm for five generations and has been in existence since 1881. The website describes the company as a “a high-tech lumber manufacturer.”
Lumber and wood products are a critical and historic industry in Maine, especially in rural parts of the state. The Maine Forest Products Council said the industry contributed more than $8 billion to the state's economy in 2024 and provides about 29,000 jobs.
Public officials including Gov. Janet Mills said Friday that they are monitoring the response to the blaze.
“I urge folks to stay clear of the area, follow the instructions of law enforcement, and allow emergency personnel to respond. I ask Maine people to join me in keeping all those affected in their thoughts,” Mills posted on X.
NEW YORK (AP) — Harvey Weinstein’s rape retrial has ended in a mistrial. A judge declared it Friday after the jury deadlocked. The former Hollywood mogul has been convicted of other sex crimes on two U.S. coasts and remains behind bars. But the mistrial leaves the New York rape charge in limbo after three trials. Weinstein appeared expressionless as court officers ushered him out in his wheelchair. The stalemate emerged a few hours into the third day of deliberations. Weinstein didn’t testify during the trial. A majority-male Manhattan jury weighed whether the former movie mogul raped a woman in a New York hotel in 2013. Defense lawyers argue that the encounter was consensual.
A profound vibe shift is underway in America — one the mainstream media refuses to cover with honesty.
At the center of this hopeful turnaround is James Owen and Reawaken USA. As President and CEO, Owen leads a bold national campus movement dedicated to year-round evangelism, student leadership, and cultural engagement grounded in a biblical worldview.
South Carolina House Republicans, led by strong conservatives like Rep. Luke Rankin (District 14), are returning after the legislative deadline to redraw the state’s congressional maps and safeguard Republican majorities.
Louisiana state senators have approved a new congressional map after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the previous version.
The proposal would eliminate a majority-Black district and could reshape the state’s congressional representation ahead of the November midterm elections.
The plan now heads to the Louisiana House as lawmakers work to redraw district boundaries before upcoming elections.
Prosecutors in Utah have charged a suburban Salt Lake City police officer with manslaughter in a fatal 2024 shooting.
Court documents say Officer Jimmy Jeremy Haas shot an unarmed man through the back window of a pickup truck during a parking lot confrontation.
Prosecutors say an expert concluded the amount of force used was not reasonable. Haas remains on paid leave while the case moves forward.
The Justice Department is accusing Yale University of illegally considering race in admissions to its medical school.
Federal officials say an investigation found Black and Hispanic applicants were admitted at higher rates than white and Asian applicants with similar academic records and test scores.
Yale says it stands by its admissions process and plans to review the Justice Department’s findings.
Authorities are releasing new details after six people were found dead inside a shipping container at a rail yard in Laredo, Texas.
Police say the victims were from Honduras and Mexico and included a 14-year-old boy. Investigators believe the group was part of a human smuggling operation.
Officials say the victims likely died from extreme heat after entering the container in Del Rio, Texas.
Lawyers for Elon Musk and OpenAI delivered closing arguments Thursday in a closely watched trial over the company’s transition from a nonprofit organization to a for-profit business model.
Musk, a co-founder of OpenAI, accuses CEO Sam Altman and company leaders of abandoning the organization’s original mission focused on benefiting humanity.
The outcome of the case could affect OpenAI’s future business structure and have broader implications for the rapidly growing artificial intelligence industry.
President Donald Trump says China may be willing to help advance discussions involving Iran following his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing.
Trump spoke about the summit Thursday, calling the talks productive and saying the two leaders discussed several major global issues, including trade and tensions in the Middle East.
The meeting comes as the U.S. and China continue to navigate strained relations over Taiwan, tariffs, and international security concerns.
Lawmakers are advancing legislation to raise the retirement age for U.S. Capitol Police officers as the department continues to deal with staffing shortages and increasing security concerns.
A bill passed unanimously by the Senate would allow officers to apply to remain on the force until age 62, while separate legislation approved by the House earlier this year would raise the limit to age 65.
Officials say the proposed changes could help improve recruitment and retention across the Capitol Police force.
In this episode of the Carl Jackson Show, Carl Jackson dives into the complex relationship between the US and China with expert Steven Moser. They discuss the recent meeting between President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, where Trump was given a hero's welcome, but the Chinese people were left in the dark. Carl and Steven explore the implications of China's economic struggles, including a declining GDP, a real estate crisis, and a demographic problem. They also touch on the US-China trade deficit, the fentanyl trade, and the Chinese Communist Party's military purges.
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WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has preserved women’s access to a drug used in the most common method of abortion, rejecting lower-court restrictions while a lawsuit continues. The court’s order Thursday allows women seeking abortions to continue obtaining the drug, mifepristone, at pharmacies or through the mail, without an in-person visit to a doctor. Access is likely to remain uninterrupted at least until well into next year as appeals play out in a suit filed by Louisiana, including a potential appeal to the high court. The court is dealing with its latest abortion controversy four years after its conservative majority overturned Roe v. Wade and allowed more than a dozen states to effectively ban abortion outright.
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In a time when political establishments, globalist bureaucracies, and >>In a time when political establishments, globalist bureaucracies, and multinational corporations dominate so much of life, Alex Marlow offers a strong and independent voice. <<
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