HARPSWELL, Maine — With thousands of dollars of damage sustained after January storms, U.S. Sen. Susan Collins took a trip to the midcoast Saturday to hear from fishermen as they work to rebuild.
An impromptu trip, Collins said she hopes to take her first-hand accounts of the damage to Washington D.C. to expedite federal funding and assistance.
"In general, federal assistance in past fishery disaster declarations, for example, have been very slow. We need to get assistance as quickly as possible," Collins said. "It's part of our heritage and it's so important that we preserve that."
Meeting up at several spots along Bailey Island in Harpswell, residents and fishermen pointed out damaged wharfs, strewn equipment, and traps still in disarray.
Most say although they did prepare for both the Jan. 10 and Jan. 13 storms, record-setting tides and waves still washed most away.
"The devastation that has been brought about, it truly is unlike anything I've ever seen," Collins added. "One lobster man told me he lost two hundred traps. Those traps would cost him on average a hundred and fifty dollars to replace."
With state agencies predicting weeks or even months to hear back from President Joe Biden on federal funding, lobstermen and fishermen say any acceleration of funding will be crucial over the next couple of months.
"These places are only so big, so where does your neighbor go?" Jerry Leeman said, who founded the New England Fisheries Stewardship Association. "And yeah we got kicked down but we'll get right back up ... we always do."
With most federal emergency assistance focusing on fixing public infrastructure, Collins also hopes she can use her trip to pull funding for the amount of private docks and equipment in disarray.