Around New England

Maine Island Bans Visitors Amid Coronavirus Pandemic

March 16, 2020

One island in Maine is taking a closed border approach when it comes to dealing with the coronavirus.

The board of selectmen in the town of North Haven, Maine decided on Sunday that travel to the island for anything other than essential purposes would now be banned.

Travel to the island is permitted for those “providing medical care, conducting law enforcement activities, direct caregiving and resupplying the island with items residents need,” according to WMTW-TV Channel 8 in Portland.

Residents of the island are allowed to travel to the mainland to get supplies, but contractors from off-island who work on the island are banned for the time being.

Selectmen also determined that gatherings exceeding 10 people will be banned. The one exception to the rule is family gatherings.

The town offered no timetable on when they expect the ban to be lifted.

The board of selectmen is the highest executive board in most towns in New England, and in most towns has a supervisory role over public safety.

Located in Maine’s Knox County, North Haven had a population of 355 in the 2010 census. The town is on an island several miles off the coast of central Maine, about 75 miles northeast of Portland.