Central Maine News: North Pond Hermit Finished a Special Court Program

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

A freight train collided with a tractor-trailer and derailed at a railroad crossing in Auburn. The truck drive ignored the crossing's warning system and tried to cross the tracks ahead of the train on Monday. The train hit the tuck spilling its load of crushed rock. The train's engine derailed, while the 33 rail cars it was hauling stayed upright on the tracks. The truck is owned by Auburn Concrete and is considered a total loss. The train engine sustained slight damage. (AP)

Maine's government website is back online after it was down for a while yesterday because of a cyberattack. Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap said a "denial-of-service" attack caused the website to become briefly inaccessible on Monday. That type of hacker attack occurs when external data requests overwhelm the server that hosts the website. There was no security breach and there is no reason to believe that any personal information was compromised. An investigation into the incident is underway. But attacks on government websites are common. (AP)

The North Pond Hermit finished a special court program. Christopher Knight stole food, clothing and camping gear from homes while living as the North Pond Hermit for 27 years. He was arrested in April 2013.He pleaded guilty to 13 counts of burglary and theft and served about seven months in jail before entering the court program in October 2013.Knight attended a hearing Monday in Kennebec County Superior Court and will begin three years' probation. Knight has been working for his brother in exchange for room and board. He also is taking part in a vocational rehab program to develop skills for a regular job. (AP)

A Winthrop man is dead after a tense stand-off with police Monday. According to WGME the incident locked down an entire neighborhood & schools. 49-year-old Ronald Tripp threatened to hurt his wife and young child. Officers went to the home and tried to speak with Tripp by cell phone and in person, but he ordered police off the property. Officials called for the State Police Tactical Team, then officers heard one gunshot from the home around 11 a.m. When the tactical team arrived; they found Tripp dead, from what they believe was a self-inflicted gunshot wound. (WGME)

Police found a man wanted for burglary in Fairfield. According to WGME he sent out two Snapchats letting people know his exact location. Chris Wallace posted on Snapchat Sunday night that he was at home in Fairfield. Fairfield police went to home but did not find him at first.  As police were leaving, Wallace sent out another Snapchat saying that “police were searching for him in the house, and that he was hiding in a cabinet.” Acting on these tips, police were able to locate Wallace in one of the kitchen cabinets. (WGME)

Gov. LePage's administration is pushing back against a slew of bills that would raise Maine's minimum wage. A committee heard testimony Monday on seven proposals to raise the $7.50 per hour minimum wage to varying levels. It has not been increased since 2009. An eighth proposal would have the Legislature study the issue. Supporters told the committee that a modest boost is long overdue and will pull more families out of poverty and spur economic growth. (AP)

The Augusta Police Department believes they know the identity of the woman who ended in the river Saturday. They believe she is 54-year-old Kelly Voytasko of Augusta. Her family reported her missing shortly after this incident and based on the totality of the circumstances and there is a high probability that she is the person police are looking for. Recovery efforts are still suspended at this point because of the conditions on the Kennebec River. Efforts for a recovery will resume once it safe enough to do so. (WCSH)