2022 Year in Review - Part 2

PRESQUE ISLE, Maine (WAGM) -

As 2023 is just getting started, we look back on 2022 as it was certainly a year of highs and lows. NewsSource 8′s Brian Bouchard gives us a look at some of the top stories we covered over the second half of 2022.

In July a Houlton business owner donated new flags to the town of Houlton to display and the county came together to celebrate our nations independence. Route 1 in Cyr Plantation was reopened after several weeks of repairs. A microburst wreaked havoc on parts of Aroostook County including Pelletier island. Dental care was added to the MaineCare program, and U.S. Attorney for the District of Maine, Darcie McElwee came home for a visit.

August kicked off with an armed standoff in the town of Stolkholm, followed by word that Aroostook County was no longer in a drought. The first case of Monkeypox was identified in the county and 2 Vietnam veterans were inducted into the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund “In Memory Program”. A B52 landed at the former Loring air force base for the first time since it’s closure and Bobby Nightingale stood trial for the 2019 murders of Roger Ellis and Allan Curtis.

September saw the United Way Telethon where 23,000 dollars was raised to benefit the Dolly Parton Imagination Library in Aroostook County. A sanitation worker suffered a heart attack at the Presque Isle International Airport and was rescued by the quick actions of a TSA Agent. England’s longest reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth II passed away and members of the Loring Air Museum were honored as Honorary Crew Chiefs. WAGM celebrated another potato harvest with the Potato Pickers Special and the Federal Reserve rose interest rates in an effort to stave off rapidly increasing inflation.

In October, a plane flown by two Southern Maine construction executives crashed in Arundel after departing Presque Isle International Airport. The town of Van Buren had 2 standoffs over the course of 1 week and LIHEAP funds were released early in an effort to prepare for what is anticipated to be a brutal winter. Jojo Morales, a child that went missing in Miami in August was spotted at a Houlton Walgreens and was found safe in Canada, his father, Jorge Morales was taken into custody. We also saw the end of the Emergency Rental Assistance program.

November saw a midterm election with unexpectedly high voter turnout and both Governor Janet Mills and Representative Jared Golden remained in their elected positions. Veterans across Aroostook County were honored and thanked for their service to our country on Veterans day.The Helping Hands telethon raised a record 105,000 dollars for emergency heating assistance and Aroostook County celebrated Thanksgiving by helping those less fortunate or alone have a warm and delicious meal.

In December, Bobby Nightingale was given two life sentences and a record number of county residents applied for LIHEAP benefits. Van Buren’s town offices moved into the former McDonald’s building and Presque Isle saw the reopening of the Northeastland Hotel along with Rodney’s at 436 Main. And finally people hit the stores to buy gifts and attended events to help celebrate the Christmas season while a Christmas windstorm ripped through the county, leaving many without power particularly in the Fort Fairfield/Limestone area.

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