Dairy barn collapse / Missing letter jacket / Penobscot County schools

Today is Tuesday. Temperatures will be in the low to mid-30s with partly sunny skies in the south and mostly cloudy skies in the north. Here’s what we’re talking about in Maine today.

Here’s the latest on the coronavirus in Maine

The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported a record-breaking 425 coronavirus cases across the state on Monday. There are now 3,402 active confirmed and “probable” cases in the state, while the death toll remains at 227. It was the largest increase of cases seen since Dec. 4. Check out our COVID-19 Tracker for more information.

Maine has again been forced to scale back its efforts to trace the contacts of every person infected with the coronavirus, shifting more of that responsibility onto some lower-risk individuals as the illness keeps surging to record levels and overwhelming the state’s ability to do all that work on its own.

Death of cows in weekend storm just the latest struggle for dairy farmers

David Quimby of Shady Lane Farm on Dec. 7 shows the cow barn that recently collapsed at his property in Troy. Credit: Natalie Williams / BDN

For dairy farmers David and Debra Quimby of Shady Lane Farm in Troy, 2020 has brought one hardship after another. But the worst disaster yet happened during this weekend’s storm, when high winds and wet, heavy snow caused the roof of their cow barn to collapse, trapping their 80-head dairy herd inside the mangled metal and wood structure.

Mal Osborn of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, is all smiles now that he has recovered his University of Maine varsity letter jacket from 1952. The 92-year-old Lincoln native, who was born in Bangor, lost the jacket recently. However, a Facebook post describing his loss led to speedy recovery of the jacket. (Photo courtesy of Beverly Amick)

Few things give Mal Osborn a greater sense of pride than his University of Maine letter jacket. That’s why he was so disappointed when he misplaced it.

The 92-year-old Lincoln native has grown attached to the wool “M” jacket, which represents his successes as a runner at UMaine from 1949-52. And when it went missing last month, thanks to social media it took less than 24 hours to find it.

“I know there’s good people in the world, but this made me more aware of it,” Osborn said.

Penobscot County schools are prepared for more remote learning if virus surge continues

Students enter Hermon High School in late September. The state is watching Penobscot County’s virus numbers for a potential school safety downgrade, under which the state would recommend schools adopt a hybrid model of remote and in-person learning. Credit: Linda Coan O'Kresik / BDN

The Maine Department of Education is closely monitoring Penobscot County this week in preparation for a potential downgrade from a “green” to “yellow” school safety rating. If the state says on Friday that it’s no longer safe for the county’s schools to be open full-time, Penobscot County schools are ready to switch to partially or completely remote learning.

Watch an owl swoop down on a skunk in this remarkable trail cam photo

An owl dives down, apparently in an effort to attack a skunk. A state raptor biologist says great horned owls are one of only a few species that actually eat skunks. Credit: Courtesy of Bob Hall

According to legend (and a few TV commercials) owls are supposed to be among the smartest of birds. “Wise old owl,” you often hear. All I can tell you is this: The owl in this trail camera photo, sent to us by Bangor Daily News reader Bob Hall, is not the sharpest beak in the flock.

Penobscot native uses vacation fund to open tribal gift shop in Old Town

Dawnland Handmade Creations opened at 278 Main Street over the weekend. The gift shop features handmade art by Maine’s native communities. Credit: Courtesy of Maria Girouard

Opening a new business in a struggling downtown during a global pandemic was something of a leap of faith for Maria Girouard. The Penobscot Nation historian and artist has dreamed of opening her own shop for decades and despite the challenges brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, everything seemed to fall into place this year.