Escape Claws- Truckload of Lobsters Overturns on Interstate 95 in Maine

In what must have been the crustacean equivalent of that one scene from The Fugitive, a tractor-trailer carrying 30,000 lbs of lobster overturned on I-95 in Maine last week.

A tractor-trailer carrying 30,000 pounds of live lobsters from Nova Scotia overturned early Wednesday morning on Interstate 95 southbound during whiteout conditions, according to the driver and state police.

The driver, Horst Puff, 55, of Greenfield, Nova Scotia, and his dog, Banjo, 10, were not injured in the crash, which occurred around midnight Tuesday as Puff tried to avoid striking a vehicle that had spun out in front of him, both he and state police Trooper Joseph Chretien said at the scene later Wednesday.

“I’m OK,” Puff said, as he stood on I-95, his back against the wind. “There were dry roads from Bangor down to here. Everything was OK.”

He said then there was blowing snow, whiteout conditions and a car in front of him. “The car hit the brakes. I hit the brakes,” he said. “I saw nothing and came too far left and tipped over and Banjo went on top of me. He was on my chest.”

The car that was in front of the truck never stopped, and the driver’s identity is not known, police said.

The truck came to rest in the median about two miles north of exit 133 and near the Fairfield town line. There it stayed all day Wednesday, before it was finally removed around 7 p.m. The truck had to be righted with a crane, and the difficulty as well as the strong wind that blew all day delayed the move. Both southbound lanes were briefly closed for the removal.

Puff was driving the 2007 International truck owned by Gerhardt Trucking of Nova Scotia, taking the lobsters to wholesalers in Brooklyn, N.Y., and Rhode Island.

The lobsters, in 300 crates that weighed about 100 pounds each, survived the wreck and were being taken out of state following inspection by a state agriculture official, Chretien said.

Banjo, a ten year old Australian Shepherd-husky mix, survived the collision and is being cared for at nearby Boulet's Truck Service in Fairfield, ME. Gerhardt sent another truck and trailer down from Nova Scotia to bring the lobsters to their destination in New York. Investigators and the insurance company have said that the truck would most likely be written off as a total loss.

Nova Scotia's Christmas Tree Arrives in Boston

For the 42nd consecutive year, a Christmas Tree gifted to the City of Boston by the province of Nova Scotia has made its way to Boston Common.

After being sent off in a ceremony at the property of Mary Lou Milligan of Mill Cove, NS last month the Tree for Boston was also featured in a parade in Halifax before departing for the Bay of Fundy ferry. The 47 foot white spruce is said to be more than 50 years old. Significantly, the tractor trailer carrying the tree was escorted out of Halifax this year by runners to commemorate the dead or wounded in the Patriot's Day Boston Marathon bombing.

The Christmas Tree for Boston tradition dates back to the horrific 1917 Halifax explosion. During WWI, the Mont Blanc- a French munitions ship- collided with another vessel and caught fire. The ensuing explosion killed some 2000 people and is widely believed to be the largest man-made blast prior to the advent of the nuclear bomb. Word of the blast reached the outside world thanks to a railway telegrapher named Vince Coleman who also perished in the explosion. The blast leveled buildings within a mile and a half of the harbor, leaving many trapped under the rubble. Making matters worse, a blizzard was closing in on Halifax that night

As the injured and homeless were being evacuated, the Massachusetts Red Cross was able to muster a trainload of doctors, nurses, medicine and tents to treat the wounded. Moving through Maine and the Maritime provinces in the middle of a blizzard, the train arrived in Halifax the following morning.

As a token of their appreciation, the city of Halifax sent Boston a Christmas tree the following year. The tradition was dormant until the early 1970s when it was revived by the Lunenburg County Christmas Tree Producers Association.

Christine Hayes- Boston Globe

Like last year, the tree's journey could be followed on Facebook or Twitter or Facebook and after its arrival in Boston. The tree was lit in a December 5th ceremony on Boston Common featuring fireworks, live music and figure skaters.

Boston's Christmas Tree Gets Interactive on Trek Down from Nova Scotia

In keeping with a 41 year tradition with the province of Nova Scotia, the city of Boston's Christmas Tree was lit on Boston Common last week.

I wrote about the origins of this Christmastime tradition between Nova Scotia and Boston for almost as long as I've had this blog.

Basically on December 6th 1917, at the height of World War One, a French munitions ship caught fire after a collision in Halifax Harbor. The ensuing blast killed nearly 2000 people and laid waste to much of the cities of Halifax and Dartmouth. Red Cross officials in Boston got word of the catastrophe via telegraph and immediately began assembling a train loaded with doctors, nurses, medicine, food and tents for Nova Scotia in what would be widely considered a blueprint for disaster relief in the future.

As a token of their thanks, the following year, the province of Nova Scotia arranged to have a tall and sturdy Christmas Tree shipped to the city of Boston for Chritmastime. It appeared the gift was a one-time deal until the early 1970s when the Lunenburg County Christmas Tree Producers Association decided they could promote their product by reviving the tradition.

Since then, the Christmas Tree tradition has continued uninterrputed, although the province now handles the selection and transport of the tree to Boston. While there is no monetary compensation, many Nova Scotians consider it an honor to have one of their trees selected.

The Boston Christmas Tree making its way through Shelburne, NS with police escort. Tree For Boston photo via Facebook

This year's Boston tree is a 70 year old, 45 ft tall white spruce that comes from Paul and Jan Hicks of Jordan Bay, NS. In addition to being accompanied by Nova Scotia Deputy Premier Frank Corbett and two uniformed Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers, this year's Boston Christmas Tree apparently is also social media savvy.

You see, the Hicks' tree is the first to update its users of its status via twitter or facebook- tweeting under the handle @TreeForBoston. Not only were followers updated of the Tree's travels, but also its getting prepped for last Thursday's tree-lighting ceremony.

And as Bostonians take in the sight of this year's Christmas tree, the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources is already searching for candidates to be 2013's Boston Christmas Tree.

The Big Four-Oh. Nova Scotia's Boston Tree Shipping Up to Boston in 40th Year of Christmas Tradition

Truck driver Don MacLean posing w/the Boston Tree before it embarks on the ferry at Digby, NS on November 17th. MacLean works for Nova Scotia's Department of Transportation and has driven the Boston Tree each year since 1998. Jonathan Riley/Digby County Courier photo

A 44 foot spruce from the property of Ken and Donna Spinney of Argyle, NS has the honor of being Nova Scotia's annual Christmas tree to the city of Boston this year.


The tree was felled in a ceremony with schoolchildren and local officials present on the morning of November 15. The tradition goes back to the horrific 1917 explosion of a French munitions ship in Halifax Harbor that killed at least 2,000 people. A railway dispatcher named Vince Coleman was able to get word to the outside world of the impending catastrophe and stopping incoming trains short of the blast radius before he was killed in the massive explosion.

When word reached Boston, the Boston chapter of the Red Cross immediately began gathering doctors, nurses, shelters and medicine to put on board a special train from Boston to Halifax to relieve the doctors and rescue workers who had been toiling non-stop since the blast.

As a gesture of their appreciation, the province of Nova Scotia sent the city of Boston a giant Christmas tree the following year. While that apparently seemed like a one-time deal, the Lunenburg County Christmas Tree Producers Association decided to revive the tradition in 1971 as a means of promoting their product, and the city of Boston was more than happy to receive a tall tree for Boston Common.

Evan Richman/ Boston Globe Photo

This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Boston Christmas tree revival. This year's tree travelled by ferry from Digby, NS across the Bay of Funday to New Brunswick and continued via highway from there.

This year's lighting ceremony is scheduled for Thursday, December 1st.

Today's Train of Thought- Walkin' in a Windsor Wonderland, December 16, 2010

Today's rather snowy Train of Though comes to us from North of the Border in the province that's been sending the city of Boston a Christmas tree each year.

Established in 1994, the 55-mile Windsor and Hantsport is one of Nova Scotia's newest shortlines. Operating trackage formerly belonging to Canadian Pacific subsidiary Dominion Atlantic, the Windsor & Hantsport immediately went to work hauling carloads of gypsum behind a small fleet of former Canadian Pacific MLW RS23s.

The unique, high-hooded former Canadian Pacific RS23s operated until just a few years ago when they were replaced by chopnose former Canadian National GP9s. Here, railpictures.net contributor Rod Bushway braved a snowstorm to catch RS23s #8036, #8038 and #8047 hauling a string of empty gypsum hoppers through a snowy Hantsport, NS in January 2002.

Boston's Christmas Tree Arrives from Nova Scotia

I had been pretty busy the last couple of weeks and was starting to feel pretty 'humbug' before I realized that I had completely forgotten about Boston's Christmas Tree arriving from Nova Scotia this month.

For a little background on this tradition between the province of Nova Scotia and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, click here.

The tradition was dormant for several years before being revived by the province and a local association of Christmas Tree growers in 1971.

For 2010, the honors went to a 50ft tall white spruce from the property of Gary Misner of North Alton, NS. Concerned the tree could topple onto his house, Misner offered the tree to Nova Scotia for exactly such an occasion.

BU Daily Free Press

The tree was lit in a ceremony with a concert and fireworks on the night of December 2nd at the Boston Common.

The Great War, A Terrible Pillar of Fire, The Narrows, Cities in Ruins, A Blizzard and A White Spruce- The Story Behind Boston's Christmas Tree

(Boston Globe- file photo)

The story of the Christmas tree that shows up annually on Boston Common begins nearly 92 years ago and several hundred miles northeast of the city with a collision between two vessels in Halifax Harbor on a wintry December 6, 1917. In a last-second attempt at evasive maneuvers, both the Norweigan freighter SS Imo and the loaded French munitions ship SS Mont Blanc- its cargo destined for the front lines of France in WWI- ended up colliding with each other at approximately 8:45AM that morning after the Imo had cleared the mouth of Halifax Harbor (known locally as the Narrows). The collision sparked a small fire on the Mont Blanc that quickly spread out of control. Within 10 minutes, the Mont Blanc's captain gave the order to abandon ship. The French-speaking crew landed safely on the Dartmouth side of the harbor in a pair of rowboats, but the crew's frantic warnings shouted in French weren't understood by the inhabitants of the English-speaking city. As other ships came to the aid of the burning Mont Blanc, a crowd of onlookers gathered along the shores of the harbor.

At 9:04 AM, a blast equivalent to 3 kilotons of TNT instantly destroyed the Mont Blanc in a fireball that rose well over a mile into the sky. A tsunami estimated to be 60ft high was also generated by the massive explosion, and those that weren't killed by the blast, debris or hot shards of metal raining down on the city were swept out to sea or crushed by vessels and heavy debris being swept onto the shore. The blast could be heard from as far away as Prince Edward Island.

The death toll from the Halifax explosion was estimated to be at 2,000. News spread to the rest of Canada and the world due to a message sent by Intercolonial Railway of Canada dispatcher Vince Coleman. Coleman initially fled when naval officers came ashore and warned railway personnel of the impending danger, but returned to the station's telegraph office- located only a few hundred feet from the Mont Blanc- to send out a message in Morse Code:

Stop trains. Munition ship on fire. Making for Pier 6. Goodbye.

The railways heeded Coleman's warning and all inbound trains for Halifax and Dartmouth were stopped. Coleman was killed in the blast, but credited with saving scores of lives for raising the alarm.

Unfortunately, Hailfax's suffering did not end with the Mont Blanc raining hot shrapnel and black soot on the area. Since it was Nova Scotia in the wintertime, that meant several homes and businesses had furnaces, stoves or lamps that tipped over or spilled from the force of the blast, starting small structure fires that would quickly grow out of control since most of the firefighters in Halifax were killed in the blast.

Mother Nature also had something in store for the Halifax/Dartmouth area as well. Hardly even a day after the Mont Blanc explosion, as thousands of injured, maimed and homeless survivors of the blast were awaiting shelter and medical care, a blizzard moved into the area and dumped sixteen inches of snow on the area. Although this prevented the smaller, ancillary fires from spreading through what was left of Halifax, this also hampered search efforts and some survivors died from exposure.

'Now where does Boston and Christmas trees fit into all of this?' you might be asking yourself if you've read this far. I know...hang on.

Upon receiving news of the calamity and massive loss of life in Halifax, the Boston chapter of the Red Cross began mustering doctors, nurses, volunteers, makeshift shelters and supplies in Boston. A special train with the supplies and personnel left Boston at 10PM on the day of the blast and made it's way through the blizzard and onto the Canadian Maritime provinces, arriving in the early morning hours of December 8th to provide relief to the aid workers and medical staff already on site, most of whom had been working non-stop since the day of the blast. Much needed food, medicine and water was immediately offloaded from the train.

One of the legacies of the blast was Boston surgeon William Ladd noting the lack of coordinated pediatric care in the region. Ladd would later be considered the pioneer of pediatric surgery in North America thanks to some of the insights gained while serving in Halifax.

Another legacy was that in December 1918, the city of Halifax sent Boston a Christmas Tree as a token of their appreciation for Beantown's quick response in providing aid to Halifax. Curiously, this did not become an annual tradition until 1971 as a promotion by the Lunenburg County Christmas Tree Producers Association. The province of Nova Scotia has set up a criteria for suitable trees to be shipped off to Boston that can be seen here.

(Boston Christmas Tree on the hoof, Clementsvale NS- Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources photo)

This year's official Christmas tree for Boston- a 46ft tall white spruce- was lit in Boston Common on December 3rd. The tree was a gift from the property of Folyd and Elaine Shatford of Fox Point, NS and was removed on November 17th. If you're interested in learning more about the 1917 Halifax explosion, you can read a more detailed account in Laura M. Mac Donald's Curse of the Narrows.

(Shippin' Up to Boston- ChesterNS.ca)

Unfortunate Headline Watch

From CNN:

Canadian folk singer died doing something she loved, mother says

Um.....hell no. I don't care how into nature you are, nobody loves getting mauled by a pack of coyotes.

Having said that, the whole affair of 19 year-old folk singer Taylor Mitchell getting attacked by a pack of coyotes in Nova Scotia's Cape Breton National Park is bizarre enough to start off with. Couple this with a public statement from the mother where she seems to be mourning the offending coyotes as much as she was her own daughter.

"When the decision had been made to kill the pack of coyotes, I clearly heard Taylor's voice say, 'please don't, this is their space.' She wouldn't have wanted their demise, especially as a result of her own. She was passionate about animals, was an environmentalist and was also planning to volunteer at the Toronto Wildlife Centre in the coming months," Emily Mitchell said in a statement Thursday

[Oh, and thanks for the map of Eastern Canada, CNN. My tiny pea-brain wouldn't have been able to locate Nova Scotia without your visual aides- NANESB!]