The Freitas family who opened All Ranks Academy of Gymnastics five years ago have made the tough decision to close their doors for good.

The family-owned operation has exhausted every avenue of possibilities to keep the business open – one that has been a great source of joy for children and their parents alike. Because Governor Baker as closed most businesses due to the COVID-19 pandemic that has meant an end to revenue sources for many. While chain stores like Walmart, Costco, A&P, et al have the financial resources and capital to survive – even receiving government “bail-outs” – that isn’t the case for many “mom & pops”
stores like All Ranks Academy of Gymnastics.

The saddest aspect of it all is that the Freitas’ had fulfilled a dream by opening up the gym – a dream that has been smashed and along with it all the families who took much enjoyment from gymnastics. Perhaps many of whom had dreams and aspirations to pursue the sport to an Olympic level.

In a Facebook post the family made the announcement along with a personal message to their clients’ families:

“To All Our All Ranks Academy Families ,

Coach Dustin and Coach Billie.”

In their 5 years of being open the Freitas’ had a positive impact on hundreds of families in the greater New Bedford area and beyond winning state championships and even competing at the national level.

A sad loss not only for the Freitas’ and the kids involved in their program but the entire community.

The Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles announced it will be implementing further extensions to the renewal timelines for expiring professional credentials, and licenses and permits, including Commercial Driver’s Licenses and Commercial Driver’s License Permits (CDLs / CLPs).

While the RMV had previously announced 60-day extensions for most credentials, passenger plate registrations and inspection stickers expired or expiring in March and April, extensions will be pushed back even further.

These additional extensions under Governor Charlie Baker’s declaration of a State of Emergency the week of March 9th, replicate the ongoing measures the RMV is taking to reduce the need for customers to physically visit an RMV Service Center or one of its business partners’ facilities, allowing for ‘social-distancing’ by decreasing non-essential travel and customer volume.

The new changes to expiration extensions are now in effect as follows:

All non-commercial driver’s licenses and ID cards that expired or will expire in March, April, and May 2020, will now expire in September 2020. Driver’s licenses and ID cards that will expire in June have been extended until October 2020. Driver’s licenses and ID cards that will expire in July have been extended until November 2020. Driver’s licenses and ID cards that will expire in August have been extended until December 2020. The specific expiration date typically coincides with an individual’s birth date. Customers holding a license marked “Limited-Term” that has expired or will expire between March 1 and August 31, 2020 should visit Mass.gov/RMV for more information and to check the validity of their credential.

All learner’s permits expiring between March and August 2020 have been extended until December 2020. This extension will allow additional time for permit students and driving schools to complete in-car instruction and a road test when those functions are authorized to re-start safely.

All Massachusetts commercial driver licenses (CDLs) and commercial learner’s permits (CLPs) with an expiration date between March 1, 2020 and August 31, 2020, have been extended. CDLs and CLPs that expired or will expire in March, April, and May 2020, will now expire in September 2020 and do not need to be renewed at this time. CDLs and CLPs that will expire in June have been extended until October 2020. CDLs and CLPs that will expire in July have been extended until November 2020. CDLs and CLPs that will expire in August have been extended until December 2020. This does not apply to any commercial driver or permit holder whose privileges were suspended or revoked for traffic offenses.

All CDL Medical Certificates (Med Certs) that have expired or will expire after March 1st through May 31st have been extended until June 30th. All CDL Medical Certificates expiring between June 1 and August 31 have been extended until September 30, 2020. This will prevent license downgrades and elective medical visits, as well as alleviate demand on medical providers, during the State of Emergency.

The annual motor vehicle safety and emissions inspection stickers that expire on May 31, 2020 will now expire on July 31, 2020. This extension will also apply to those whose expired March 2020, and April 2020 inspection sticker was already extended by 60 days. Annual motor vehicle inspection stickers typically expire on the last date of the month. While automotive repair and maintenance facilities continue to remain open as “essential services” and inspection stations may operate at their discretion, these annual inspections do not need to occur at this time.

All passenger plate registrations that will expire in May 2020, will now expire in July 2020. This extension will also apply to those whose expired March 2020 and April 2020 passenger plate registration was already extended by 60 days. Registration renewals can continue to be performed online at Mass.Gov/RMV during this time. Customers seeking to do so in-person will not be able to make an appointment and should delay their visit to a Service Center at this time.

“Last Thursday we reported on our Air Wing’s assistance, by making numerous water drops, in suppressing a forest fire that was encroaching on some houses in the town of Deerfield. But for two of our flight crews, the work wasn’t done after that.

Around 5:25 p.m. Thursday, as MSP helicopters Air 1 and Air 2 were en route from western Massachusetts to their Plymouth base after assuring in the Bambi bucket operations in Deerfield, the crews observed another forest fire in Norton, close to the Mansfield Municipal Airport. Thick smoke and flames were visible.

The MSP Air Wing established communications with Norton Police and Fire. By that time firefighters had been working at the scene for more than an hour.

Air Wing Troopers offered assistance and began procedures for aerial firefighting operations (seen the accompanying photos). By 6:40 p.m. the MSP flight crews began dropping water on the fire. The water drops continued for approximately one hour, at which point the fire was under control and nearly extinguished. Both crews returned safely to Plymouth following the day’s second successful cooperative firefighting effort between multiple agencies.”

It’s a State Trooper’s most fundamental mission: to help others in a time of crisis and danger. Sometimes those in danger can not speak for themselves. And sometimes they are a different species.

So when Massachusetts State Trooper Jim Maloney came across some baby ducks who had fallen through the grate of a storm drain in the parking lot at Nahant Beach Saturday morning, he fulfilled that mission to help others with some assistance from our state and local partners.

It was about 9:20 a.m. when Trooper Maloney, who was on a dedicated patrol, observed eight ducklings trapped in the water under the heavy grate. The ducklings’ mother and one of their siblings – the only baby who had not fallen through the grate – were standing off at a short distance, because Momma would not leave her trapped babies.

Trooper Maloney called the Department of Conservation and Recreation, which runs the beach, and asked them to send someone with a crowbar. Eventually workers from DCR, Nahant’s Department of Public Works, and Lynn Animal Control arrived on scene. Trooper Tim Benedetto also arrived on scene.

Nahant DPW pried open the grate, and the Lynn Animal Control Officer fished the ducklings out the drain with a net. By this time their mother had moved into a grassy area near the drain to wait. The ducklings were placed in a cardboard box and Trooper Maloney put the box in his cruiser, with the heat on, to wait for the mother duck to come out of the brush to take her babies back.

At 10 a.m. Momma and the other baby emerged from the grass and brush and the babies were taken from the box and placed at the edge of the grass. The mother immediately went to them, and together she and her nine babies — the family fully reunited — walked back into the grass.

A small act amid the enormity of the ongoing health crisis, perhaps, but for one mother duck and her tiny babies, it made all the difference in the world.

“Shortly before 10 p.m. last night Massachusetts State Troopers from the State Police-Cheshire Barracks responded to the area of the Ashuwillticook Rail Trail to assist Cheshire Police search for a missing and distraught woman. The State Police K9 Unit also responded to assist.

MSP K9 Trooper Jason Gallup responded with his partner Lennox to assist in the search for the woman, who had been missing from her home for more than two hours and was described as being in a state of crisis.

Troopers and Officers reviewed footage from a residential camera and determined that the woman had been walking on a street that ended in a densely wooded area. Police obtained a pillowcase belonging to the missing person to establish an odor signature and placed it at the point on the street where the woman was last seen.

Trooper Gallup deployed Lennox (pictured) at the pillowcase and the dog began tracking into the woods. Trooper Gallup and Lennox tracked approximately 100 yards into the woods, passing over several open trails, and Lennox than displayed a proximity alert.

The Trooper illuminated a tree line at that location and the Trooper located the missing woman lying on the ground within a tree line. Cheshire Firefighters and EMS administered emergency first aid and the woman was transported out of the woods by ATV to a waiting ambulance, which then transported her to an area hospital. We wish her a full return to health.”-Massachusetts State Police.

For those of you who live in the South End and are fans of Taco Bell but have to drive to the Coggeshall location on the other side of the city or the one in Fairhaven or Dartmouth to enjoy their menu: rejoice! One will soon be open right next door.

The Howland Mill Village Historic District property at 123 Rockdale Avenue was once Lum’s Restaurant and more recently Torman Chiropractic who owned the site (Torman Trust). The very popular area is a stone’s throw from Auto Zone, Domino’s Pizza, P&K Nails, and The Donut Factory.

At around 7:00am Saturday morning the 272-foot research vessel Kommandor Susan had a minor collision with the New Bedford/Fairhaven Hurricane Barrier. Many residents from both Fairhaven and New Bedford reported hearing the horn blasts and the Fairhaven Police received numerous phone calls.

The captain of the research vessel reported the collision to the U.S. Coast Guard and turned the ship around to return to the harbor where the extent of the damage could be inspected. Initial visual inspections show the damage to be minor and superficial in nature and the damage to the vessel and damage to the hurricane barrier itself was limited to the Fairhaven side’s bumper boards on the gates.

The barrier has had some minor scrapes throughout its history and this particular incident is actually not the first one since it was built in 1966. In 2013, a 154-foot barge carrying gravel struck the barrier causing significant damage to the timber fender protection system.

Before that, in 1977 another large ship collided with the barrier causing considerable damage to the concrete control abutment.

According to the marinetraffic.com website the R/V Kommandor Susan “…is a Research/Survey Vessel that was built in 1999 and is sailing under the flag of United Kingdom.”

R/V Kommandor Susan. Vesselfinder.com photo.

The City of New Bedford has roadwork sites for the upcoming week of May 25, 2020 –May 29, 2020 and they are as follows:

NO WORK MEMORIAL DAY- MONDAY, MAY 25, 2020

Eversource:

Eversource will replace the gas mains at the following locations:
• Tarkiln Hill Rd. and Park Ave. from Tarkiln Hill Rd. to Church St.
• Brook St. from Collette St. to Earle St.
• Davis St. from Riverside Ave. to 389 Davis St.
• Johnathan St. from Arnold St. to 57-59 Johnathan St.

Eversource will be doing final street and sidewalk restoration at various locations city-wide.

Other:

• Contractor (PA Landers) to continue drainage work at MassDOT Project #606709, New Bedford- Roadway Reconstruction and Related Work (including signals) along a section of Kings Highway and Tarkiln Hill Road, Construction to take place during regular working hours (Tuesday – Friday), police details and traffic controls will be in place.
• Department of Public Infrastructure will be filling potholes on a continuous basis throughout the city.
• Department of Public Infrastructure conducting its annual street sweeping program city-wide.
• The contractor (WES Construction) is scheduled to continue construction of the new pumping station and installation of the site utilities at the Front St./ Elm St. site. Elm St, between JFK Memorial Highway (RTE 18) and Macarthur Dr. will be closed to westbound traffic. Westbound traffic will be detoured via MacArthur Drive. There will be detour signage and traffic controls in place.
• Due to ongoing construction at the High Hill Reservoir residents may experience discolored water. The water is safe, and the discoloration will be temporary. We recommend allowing the water to settle for a few hours and then flushing your service line by letting the bathtub run for a few minutes until the water clears.

** Please note: contractors will continue to follow guidelines and protocol regarding COVID-19 social distancing while conducting work in construction zone.

Due to the current COVID-19 situation the Department of Public Infrastructure will be closed to the public entry. Office staff is available to assist by email and telephone.

The Wareham Police Association has decided that due to the Covid 19 pandemic and with the high school seniors year being cut short and unable to enjoy their final year of high school along with parents being laid off from work, to award all scholarship applicants that submitted their applications by the April 31, 2020 deadline.

The names of the recipients for the Wareham Police Association 2020 Scholarship are as follows:

1)Danielle Ansell Upper Cape Vocational Tech
2) Abigale Berriault Wareham High School
3) Stephen Caldarola Wareham High School
4) Grace Cerrato Wareham High School
5) Jarrett Fernandes Wareham High School
6) Mollie Johnson Wareham High School
7) Julianne Matthews Wareham High School
8) Natalia Moulding Wareham High School
9) Lukas Watkins Wareham High Schoo
10) Erik Zine Wareham High School
11) Gavin Smith Bourne High School
12) Justin Smith Old Rochester Regional High School
13) Analise Rogers Bourne High School
14) Jack Gerard Old Rochester Regional High School
15) Marissa Johnson
16) Alexandrea Gerard

The Bristol County Sheriff’s Office has updated its Prisoner Release Alert Notification System to include the criminal histories of county inmates who are being released from jail by judges due to COVID-19.

In the new newsletter, Bristol County Sheriff Thomas M. Hodgson highlights an individual who was facing a charge of Accessory After the Fact and was ordered released by a judge. The individual has a long criminal history with more than 70 other charges, including rape, drug possession and distribution, assaults and others.

“A little context goes a long way,” Sheriff Hodgson wrote in his remarks on the Alert System graphic. “I’m doing this because the people have a right to know who’s walking around their neighborhoods. From the beginning of the COVID pandemic, I have said that releasing people from prison because they might catch a virus is wrong and goes against the best interest of public safety.”

In the new newsletter, each bullet point represents a different individual who was ordered released from a Bristol County correctional facility due to COVID-19, according to the BCSO. For the more than 50 county inmates released, it also includes, if any, the charges they’re faced over the years. It also lists the ICE detainees that have been released by federal judges and the charges/convictions they’ve had.

This is the third update to the Bristol County Sheriff’s Office The Prisoner Release Alert System. The first included only ICE detainees and the second added county inmates. Today’s update adds criminal histories. If anyone is planning on printing it out, please have some large paper ready: To fit all the charges, the document is 3 feet tall by 3 feet wide.

“I took an oath to do all I can to protect the people of Bristol County and make our communities better places to live, work and raise a family. I can’t defy the judges’ orders to release these people, but I sure can let the people know just who’s roaming around their communities.”