AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) Maine Gov. Janet Mills ordered flags lowered to half-staff Friday as she expressed appreciation for the state’s military veterans — and invoked their courage in the state’s current battle against an unseen enemy.
The governor spoke about Mainers who served in past military conflicts and said Mainers will rise up to the occasion in battling the new coronavirus, which had claimed 75 Mainers as of Friday.
She noted that at least 10 military veterans were among the victims of the new coronavirus in Maine.
“We are facing an enemy that is real but unseen, as sure a killer as any enemy we have ever fought in our national history,” she said. “We are all soldiers in this fight,” she added.
She encouraged Mainers to do their part. She said that includes wearing masks when social distancing isn’t possible.
Flags were being lowered from Friday through Sunday for coronavirus victims. They’ll remain lowered Monday to honor military service members who lost their lives in military service.
