Central Maine News: Nov 9, 2015

These are some of the stories central Maine is talking about today.

A man is in the Androscoggin County jail after allegedly driving into two homes while drunk early Sunday morning. Authorities said Christopher Perron drove off the road and into the homes in the area of 130 Crowley Road around 3:45 a.m. A spokesperson for the Sabattus Fire Department said at least one of the homes is condemned due to the extensive damage. Authorities said Perron drove off the road and through one home, hitting a baby’s nursery. The baby was in the parents’ bedroom at the time of the crash. The truck then hit a second home. No one was injured. The residents of both homes are staying with family. (AP)

The Gardiner Public Library is the work place of Maine’s 2015 Outstanding Librarian with Library Director Anne Davis. According tote KJ, the news of the award came as a surprise to Davis last week, because the nomination process is secret. She said she’d had no hint she had been nominated until her selection was announced. Each year the Maine Library Association fields nominations for outstanding librarian from across the state, and a committee evaluates them based on demonstrated professional achievement and service to the Maine library community. (centralmaine.com)

Hundreds of people gathered at the Oakland boat landing Sunday night to light candles and hold a moment of silence for the victims of a triple murder-suicide.  According to the KJ, that shooting last week in Oakland has left many in the community shocked in the aftermath of some of the worst violence the town has ever seen.  The police are still investigating the motive to the shootings. (centralmaine.com)

Eight people were arrested early Sunday morning after a fight outside the Temple Street Tavern in which police stunned one man and used pepper spray on others to break up the argument. A total of 10 officers responded to the scene, including five from Waterville, two from Oakland, two from Winslow and one from Clinton. Officials don’t know exactly why the fight started, but alcohol seems to have escalated the problem. (centralmaine.com)

The U.S. naval commander charged with securing the waters around the Arabian Peninsula says Iran's nuclear deal with world powers has done little to stop it from pursuing other activities the U.S. considers destabilizing. Vice Adm. Kevin Donegan says actions such as smuggling military equipment to Yemen and harassing ships in the Gulf continue just as they did before the July deal. Donegan assumed command of the U.S. Navy's Bahrain-based 5th Fleet in September. (AP)

Tourists trying to leave Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh continue to line up for flights. Security concerns have prompted Britain and several airlines to suspend normally scheduled flights to the resort and Russia has suspended all travel to Egypt. Britain's foreign secretary said that if it is confirmed that a bomb brought down the Russian plane, killing all 224 people aboard, then airport security in many cities will need to be overhauled. (AP)

Three more people have died of burn-related injuries they sustained in a nightclub fire in Romania, bringing the total death toll from the fire to 44. Nine deaths were announced yesterday, the highest number for a single day since the fire broke out on Oct. 30 at a Bucharest nightclub. A spark from a pyrotechnics show ignited foam decor. (AP)

Pope Francis says the theft of documents describing financial malfeasance inside the Holy See was a "crime," and that publishing the documents in two new books "was a deplorable act that doesn't help." But Francis told followers in St. Peter's Square today that "this sad fact will certainly not" divert him from the reforms he is pursuing. He has made it a top priority to reform the Vatican bureaucracy known as the Curia. (AP)

People across Britain have paused for a moment of silent reflection today to remember the country's war dead. A hush fell over central London as Big Ben struck 11 a.m. The annual service led by the queen takes place on the nearest Sunday to the anniversary of the end of World War I on Nov. 11, 1918. (AP)