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Tornado watch issued for parts of New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts until 8 p.m.

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Tornado watch issued for parts of New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts until 8 p.m.


CONCORD — The National Weather Service in Gray, Maine, warns residents and visitors in New Hampshire that there is an enhanced risk for severe storms Sunday.

At about 1 p.m., a tornado watch was issued for parts of Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Vermont until 8 p.m. by the National Weather Service in Gray, Maine. A tornado watch means current weather conditions could lead to a tornado, and you should be prepared to move to shelter. A warning means a tornado is occurring or about to happen, seek shelter immediately.

According to the National Weather Service in Gray, Maine, thunderstorms are expected to develop between 2 to 4 p.m. and move southeast across the area through the evening by 9 p.m.

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The New Hampshire Department of Safety’s Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management urges residents and visitors to prepare now for the possibility of damaging winds, isolated tornadoes, hail, and flash flooding.

“Stay informed to keep you and your family safe,” said HSEM Director Robert Buxton. “Review your family emergency plan now and make sure your emergency kit is stocked. Your kit should include important documents and contact information along with supplies.”

The NWS said there is the potential for winds over 70 mph, and the Storm Prediction Center has issued a 10% risk for tornadoes across New Hampshire for Sunday.

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Campers should have a way to be aware of changing conditions and be prepared to evacuate to higher ground immediately if flooding occurs. Campers also should have a plan for alternative shelter if needed.

The state Department of Safety’s Division of Homeland Security and Emergency offers the following safety recommendations:

  • Have multiple ways to receive weather alerts. Monitor storm updates from the NationalWeather Service and local news stations. Sign up for NH Alerts and download the GenasysProtect mobile app to receive free emergency notifications.
  • If flooding occurs get to higher ground immediately. Just 6 inches of moving water can knockyou down, and 1 foot of water can sweep your vehicle away.
  • If driving in a vehicle, remember the saying, “turn around, don’t drown.”
  • If floodwaters rise around your car but the water is not moving, abandon the car and move tohigher ground. Do not leave the car and enter moving water. Just 6 inches of water can reachthe bottom of most passenger cars causing loss of control and possible stalling.
  • Prepare your home: Trim trees that may fall and cause damage.
  • Tie down or bring indoors any objects that might be blown around by winds (outdoorfurniture, decorations, garbage cans, and other loose objects that are normally left outside).
  • Follow instructions from local emergency officials and know how to safely evacuate shouldyou be told to do so.
  • Find the latest road conditions at newengland511.org.Learn more about staying informed, having a plan and making a kit as well as the actions to take for different severe weather events online at ReadyNH.gov.Stay informed by following New Hampshire Homeland Security and Emergency Management on Facebook, X, formerly Twitter, (@NH_HSEM) and Instagram (@NH_HSE.

Unitil readies for potential outages

Unitil Corporation announced Sunday they are prepared to respond to outages in all service regions as potentially severe thunderstorms pass through this afternoon and tonight.

According to the most recent forecast, wind gusts of 40-65 miles per hour or more are possible within the most powerful storm cells today, with isolated chances of tornado activity possible as well. High winds have the potential to take down otherwise healthy tree limbs and branches into poles and wires, causing outages.

Unitil secured additional crews in advance of the storm and will have teams ready to respond in all regions during the expected peak activity.

“Thunderstorm activity in the late spring and early summer is fast moving and has the potential to deliver extremely hazardous conditions with little to no advance warning,” Unitil External Affairs Director Alec O’Meara said. “We recognize conditions are ripe for such activity today, and we are prepared to react should any area see the worst of what is forecasted.”

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Unitil will be communicating throughout the event through Public Service Announcements (PSAs), their website, customer call center and through the media. They also encourage customers to follow along with their storm updates via Facebook, Twitter feed (@Unitil) and will provide real-time outage information online at unitil.com/map.



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New Hampshire

Special Broadcast: The Youth Development Center from NHPR's Document Team

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Special Broadcast: The Youth Development Center from NHPR's Document Team


Tune in Friday, June 28 at 7 p.m. and Saturday, June 29 at 12 p.m. for a special one-hour broadcast of The Youth Detention Center from NHPR’s Document team.

More than a thousand people have come forward to say they were abused by adults in charge at New Hampshire’s juvenile jail, known as YDC or the Youth Development Center, and other youth facilities run or contracted by the state. And people are still coming forward. How did this happen – and how did it finally come to light?

The project is a rare look inside the black box of the juvenile justice system, where privacy laws meant to protect kids also hid abuse. Jason uncovers confidential documents and previously untold stories of misconduct and retaliation, as well as surprising moments of courage, compassion, and triumph.

The team also produced a three-part podcast series called “The Youth Development Center,” hosted by NHPR’s Jason Moon. All three episodes are available now wherever you get your podcasts.

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New Hampshire teacher says student she drove to abortion clinic was 18, denies law was broken

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New Hampshire teacher says student she drove to abortion clinic was 18, denies law was broken


CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A private school teacher who says she was fired after driving an 18-year-old student to get an abortion is suing New Hampshire’s Department of Education and officials she says falsely suggested she circumvented state law.

New Hampshire law requires parents to receive written notice at least 48 hours before an abortion is performed on an unemancipated minor. But in this case, the student wasn’t living with her parents and was a legal adult, according to the lawsuit filed Monday.

The teacher, who filed the suit as “Jane Doe,” said she provided the student with contact information for a community health center last fall when the student disclosed her suspected pregnancy and later gave her a ride to the appointment in October. The school fired her within days and referred the matter to the Department of Education, which revoked her teaching license earlier this month.

The lawsuit says the department exceeded its authority and violated her due process rights by revoking her credentials without a fair and impartial process. And it accuses Education Commissioner Frank Edelblut of pushing a false narrative of her conduct via an opinion piece he published in April.

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The essay, titled “Thank God Someone is Looking Out for the Children,” was published in response to New Hampshire Public Radio reports critical of the commissioner. In it, Edelblut asked rhetorically whether the department should “turn a blind eye” when “allegedly, an educator lies by calling in sick so they can take a student – without parental knowledge – to get an abortion.”

According to the lawsuit, department officials knew for months prior to the essay’s publication that the student in question was an adult and thus not subject to the parental notification law.

Kimberly Houghton, spokesperson for the department, declined to comment on its investigation of the teacher and referred questions about the lawsuit to the attorney general’s office. Michael Garrity, spokesperson for that agency, said Wednesday that officials are reviewing it and will respond in due course. Attorneys for the teacher did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The teacher’s firing was first reported last week by The Boston Globe, based on investigatory records it requested from the Education Department. The lawsuit said the department’s “biased and stilted disclosure” of information that should have remained confidential until the case was settled created a misleading narrative that damaged the teacher’s reputation and put her at risk.

A hearing is scheduled for July 3, five days before the teacher is set to begin a new job.

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Neighbors in this N.H. town came together to repair a senior citizen’s greenhouse after it was damaged in a storm – The Boston Globe

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Neighbors in this N.H. town came together to repair a senior citizen’s greenhouse after it was damaged in a storm – The Boston Globe


“She’s a beautiful old lady,” said Kevin Parker, 70. “We just wanted to help her.”

Parker, who also lives in Fitzwilliam, was one of the neighbors who joined the team to help repair the greenhouse. He said work got underway a few weeks ago, after he and another neighbor, Todd Reed, had assembled a team.

“It became like a barn raising thing for a couple of days,” Parker said. The repairs took about 15 hours, according to Parker, who has been spending summers in Fitzwilliam for as long as he can remember. Twenty-five years ago, he became a full-time resident.

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Todd Reed said the team of volunteers stripped rotten wood off the frame of the greenhouse and cut two pieces of 40-foot plastic to drape over the frame. Amanda Gokee/Globe Staff

Parker, who is a retired general contractor turned vegetable farmer, said Bullock is beloved in town, and when it became clear that she needed help, people were willing to volunteer.

“She’s been struggling,” he said. “The thing got ripped a couple of years ago. Rolls of replacement have been there since the fall, but no one got the ball going to help her.”

That changed this spring, when her longtime neighbor Todd Reed, 60, led the repair effort.

When Reed moved to Fitzwilliam in 1986, Bullock and her husband were the first people he met. Her husband passed away in 2017, but Bullock has kept the farm stand going on her own.

“She’s just one of the nicest, sweetest ladies you ever want to meet,” said Reed, who was happy to work on the repairs after Bullock called him and asked for help. He has an auto body repair shop and raises honey bees.

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Reed said the team stripped rotten wood off the frame of the greenhouse and cut two pieces of 40-foot plastic to drape over the frame. They also installed ventilation and a double-layer of plastic that can be filled with air in the winter to provide extra warmth.

Some people were there for their knowledge, while others were just needed to hold the huge piece of plastic, according to Reed.

“You’ve got to realize unrolling a piece of plastic that size, if you get any wind at all, it makes a pretty big kite,” he said. “You need people just to hold down the corners. They don’t necessarily need to know what they’re doing, they just need to be a body holding a corner.”

Thanks to his recruitment, he said there plenty of bodies: around eight to 10 people were there to help, which was enough to avoid the kite scenario.

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Frances Bullock’s farm stand has been a roadside fixture in Fitzwilliam for at least the past 40 years. Amanda Gokee/Globe Staff

Reed said the repair should last for about three to five years before it needs to get done again.

Bullock has already filled the greenhouse with annual flowers that she can sell this year.

“I’m really happy to have this,” Bullock said. She said the money from the farm stand helps her pay to heat her house in the winter.

Bullock said she started the farm stand about 40 years ago. “We grew more than we could eat and neighbors kept coming by looking for stuff,” she said.

Now, she said the ears of corn have become a favorite among her customers.

“Fitzwilliam is split politically but all the residents love the loons on Laurel Lake and Mrs. Bullock’s corn,” said Barbara Schecter, a longtime summer resident of Fitzwilliam.

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Residents said in the town of about 2,400, it’s typical for neighbors look out for each other.

“I’ve been helped through times, too,” Parker said. “It is a place where money’s not the first issue.”


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Amanda Gokee can be reached at amanda.gokee@globe.com. Follow her @amanda_gokee.





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