Maine: Three Die in Separate Weekend ATV Crashes

 Posted by Wayne G. Barber 

AUGUSTA, Maine -- A third man was killed in an ATV crash yesterday.

At approximately 5:30 last night in Lang Township, Maine, Tyler Curry, age 29, of Groton, Massachusetts was riding alone on a private access road after leaving the group he had been riding with earlier in the day. Just prior to crossing a bridge, Curry exited a left turn and his ATV began sliding toward the edge of the road at a high rate of speed, and he straddled the outside edge of the bridge before he slid off the bridge and into the river. It appears that Curry was thrown from the ATV as he fell. Curry was not wearing a helmet. Two men who came to fish the river discovered the body and called 911 at 6:20 p.m. He was pronounced dead at the scene by emergency service personnel due to injuries sustained in the crash.

Speed appears to be a factor in the crash, and the Maine Warden Service continues to investigate. Rangeley Fire, Rangeley PD & US Border Patrol all assisted the Maine Warden Service. No further information is available currently.

The Maine Warden Service Reminds all ATV riders to:

• Always Wear Your Helmet
• Always Ride Under Control
• Always Ride Sober
• Stay On Marked Trails

“ATV riding can be a wonderful way to enjoy the outdoors when they are driven properly,” said Game Warden Corporal John MacDonald. “Always wear your helmet, always ride under control, always ride sober and stay on marked trails.”

Earlier in the day…

In Anson, Maine, a 69-year-old Freedom man was killed this morning when he was thrown from the ATV he was riding on a trail in Solon.

Roland Robitaille was second in a line of seven ATVs riding on a trail behind the Solon Road in Anson at approximately 10:40 this morning when he went over a bridge on the trail, lost control of his 2017 Yamaha Grizzly ATV, rolled, and was thrown off the ATV.

Robitaille, who was not wearing a helmet, was found face down in the trail by the by the ATVs following in his group, with severe trauma to his head and chest. His group called 911, and performed CPR until rescue personnel arrived, but he was pronounced dead at the scene, and was transported to a funeral home in Skowhegan.

The Maine Warden Service was assisted by the Anson Fire Department, and Anson-Madison Rescue. No more information is available at the time.

In The Forks, Maine, a 32-year-old Readfield man died when he lost control and flipped his ATV.

Joshua Violette was the fifth ATV traveling in a group of nine ATVs on the Divide Road in the Forks when he hit a depression in the road, lost control and flipped his 2007 Polaris Sportsman 500 ATV at approximately 10:00 a.m. this morning. Violette died at the scene. His passenger, 33-year-old Ashlie Dostie of Mt. Vernon suffered non-life threatening injuries and was transported to Reddington Fairview Hospital in Skowhegan. Neither Violette or Dostie were wearing helmets.

The Maine Wardens Service, West Forks Fire and Rescue, and Upper Kennebec Valley Ambulance all responded to the incident. No further information is available currently.

Penobscot River Salmon Run Surges for Second Straight Year

Posted by Wayne G. Barber 

Atlantic salmon are endangered, with only a few runs remaining in Maine rivers.

In encouraging news, preliminary* numbers of endangered Atlantic salmon returning to Maine’s Penobscot River for 2020 are the highest since 2011. On July 28, Maine’s Department of Marine Resources reported 1,426 salmon returns, up from 1,076 in 2019. These numbers are a vast improvement from 2014, when only 248 Atlantic salmon returned to the river to spawn. The Penobscot River hosts the largest remaining run of Atlantic salmon in the United States, but numbers are just a fraction of what they used to be—75,000 to 100,000 Atlantic salmon used to return to the river to spawn.

“There’s a lot of variability in the salmon runs, and high years can be followed by low years,” cautions NOAA Fisheries Atlantic Salmon Recovery Coordinator Dan Tierney. “We have a long way to go to recover the species, but it’s great to see that we’re moving in the right direction.

Counting Fish in a Box

Every year, returning fish pass through the Milford lift, a fish elevator with a viewing window. Installed in 2014 by hydroelectric dam owner Brookfield Renewable Energy Group, the fish lift provides access to the river above the dam, which otherwise would not be passable.

The fish swim into a box at the base of the Milford Dam, and when filled, the box rises to the top of the dam, and lets the fish out. Staff from both the Maine Department of Marine Resources and Brookfield record the fish as they pass through the viewing window.

In addition to increasing numbers of Atlantic salmon, there is good news for other sea-run fish (fish that move from rivers to sea). Alewife and blueback herring returns have increased dramatically from approximately 2,000 in 2011, to 585,000 in 2015, to more than 1.9 million this year. American shad are up from 2,000 in 2015 to more than 11,000 this year. Other species counted in the lift this year include sea lamprey, white sucker, striped bass, smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, brook trout, and shortnose sturgeon.

Taking Action for Atlantic Salmon Recovery

In 2015, we listed Atlantic salmon as a Species in the Spotlight to help focus resources, grow partnerships, and engage the public in helping save the “King of Fish.” We released a joint Atlantic Salmon Recovery Plan with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in 2019, and are continuing to work in several areas to recover the species.