Hot water in more ways than one

Have you taken a dip in the ocean lately?

You might have noticed that the water is pretty warm still. In part, that’s because, since 1982, the changing climate has added 66 days of summer-like temperatures to the water in the Gulf of Maine, according to a new study.

And while that’s nice for swimming, it has major ramifications for everything from the strength of storms to the health of fisheries and endangered whales.

One concerning result of warmer water is that the ocean off New England might become more likely to feed hurricanes.

What we’re talking about

“Another person came out of him,” the father of a young Rockport man accused of a brutally murdering his mother and three other people told BDN’s Alex Acquisto. “For people who knew my wife and [son], it’s like a math equation that doesn’t add up,” Alexander Krause said.

The father also told the the Boston Globe “there are so many unanswered questions” about the case. Chief among them is what might have led 22-year-old Orion Krause, who’s been described as a “kind, mild-mannered, smart kid,” to allegedly kill his mother, his grandparents and their caretaker in Massachusetts. Krause pleaded not guilty to the murder charges and was ordered to undergo psychological evaluation. Authorities have provided no motive for the killings and a police report from the incident had been impounded, according to the Globe. Krause’s next court date is Oct. 30.

Portland fishermen are worried that they’re being pushed off the waterfront by a glut of new hotel, office and retail development. In July, more than 90 fishermen and waterfront business owners sent a letter to the Portland Planning Board contending that developments on Commercial Street jeopardize the future of the city’s working waterfront, the Press Herald’s Peter McGuire reports. “The very lifeblood of Portland will cease to flow if these developments are allowed to continue,” the petitioners wrote.

A few more days of Liberty. Michael Liberty, the Portland-area real estate developer once called “Donald Trump with a Maine accent,” has again been allowed to delay  the start of his prison sentence. In August, Liberty, 56, was given four months in federal prison for illegally donating tens of thousands of dollars to the 2012 presidential campaign of Republican Mitt Romney. Now a Florida resident, Liberty was granted a reprieve until Sept. 22 so he could clean up the damage done to his home by Hurricane Irma.

So. Po. needs more firefighters. The city’s fire department is considering two options that would provide round-the-clock department supervision and is also pushing for more staff in the coming years, the Forecaster’s Melanie Sochan reports. In discussing additions to his staff of 67 full-time firefighters and paramedics, Fire Chief James Wilson noted the potential for 1,000 new housing units in South Portland. The department projects needing another 12 firefighters by 2022, he said.

Tweet of the day

From (the satirical) Democratic People’s Republic of North Korea News Service, critique of Batman. Interestingly, a Portlander who illustrates Batman comics seems to think there’s something to it.

  

The Big Idea

”A Most American Terrorist”  “What are you?” a member of the Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston asked Dylann Roof, during his trial for the murder of eight black parishioners and the church pastor. Writer Rachel Kaadzi Ghansah endeavoured to figure out the answer.

Got any interesting story ideas, suggestions or links to share? Email Jake Bleiberg at jbleiberg@bangordailynews.com, or tweet @JZBleiberg.

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