Bennington Banner from Bennington, Vermont • 3

LOCALSTATE RF.NNINGTON BANNER TUESDAY, APRIL 6, 2004 Officials: Pownal fires were arson Another fire was found on the railroad tracks that run adjacent to Northeast Wood Products and the other property where second fire was found. The thjrd fire was located behind Alta Gardens and Green Mountain trailer parks. Damage to the rail system was minimal and did not interrupt its operation. An approximate cost of damages are not known yet. Anyone with information is asked to call Vermont State Police-Shaftsbury, or the Vermont Tips Award I lotline, l-X)-32-ARSON.

North Adams Transcript POWNAL Arson is believed to be the cause of a fire at Northeast Wood Products on Saturday. The Pownal Fire Department responded to the blaze and found a large pile of lumber, located on the south side of the property, fully involved with flames. During investigation of the fire by Vermont Stale Police, who determined the fire was caused by arson, two additional fires were discovered in the area. One incident was located close to a storage building on an adjacent property to Northeast Wood Products. The building was not damaged by the fire.

Ceremony remembers Halverson, Black Hawk comrades one year later Potts personally flew to the wreckage to help recover the bodies. He's also the one who insisted on a memorial ceremony to mark the anniversary. "It's closure for the soldiers, closure for the families," Potts said. "The thing about the Army is it's one big family that takes care of each other." After the monument unveiling, Spc. Ian McCarthy strummed his guitar and Chief Warrant Officer Bradley McGarvey sang "Soldier After All" a song they wrote in Kuwait last year in anticipation of the war.

Their six fellow soldiers had heard the song before they died. McCarthy and McGarvey wanted their families to hear it too. "Sacrifices are what we do, in the name of God and the red, white and blue," McGarvey sang. "I stand proud and 1 stand tall. 'Cause I'm a soldier, a soldier after all." Ian Romboletti A Happy Ending engraved on one side: Boule; Captain James F.

Adampuski, 29, of Springfield, Chief Warrant Officer Erik A. Ilalvorsen, 40, of Bennington, Chief Warrant Officer Scott Jamar, 32, of Granbury, Texas; Chief Warrant Officer Eric A. Smith, 41, of California; and Sgt. Michael F. Peder-sen, 26, of Flint, Mich.

"It's nice to see that they haven't been forgotten," said Chanel Pedersen, Michael Peder-sen's widow. "Someone told me: United we stand, together we'll remember. And I'm grateful for that." Pedersen said she's still coping with her husband's death, and trying to make sense of it to their 8-year-old daughter, Destiny. "It's hard to explain to young kids small kids why daddy's not coming back. She doesn't get the concept of death," Pedersen said.

"But as the days and months go by, she's getting better." Though initial reports said the Blackhawk was shot down, the Army later concluded the cause was accidental. The helicopter's four-man crew was transporting two pilots when it crashed on a sandbar at the edge of the Karbala Lake. The Blackhawk's pilots, flying at night, apparently became disoriented and lost control, said Col. Curtis D. Potts, the brigade SAVANNAH, Ga.

(AP) As the 4-foot granite monument was unveiled from beneath a camouflage tarp, so was a year's worth of grief shared by the families of six soldiers who went down with "Storm 6." Mark Smith knelt and kissed the marker, calling his brother's name. Destiny Pedcrsen, age 8, cried for her father. And Sue Boule clutched the blackened dog tags that belonged to her son. Soldiers at Hunter Army Airfield gathered with family members of their fallen comrades Friday to mark the anniversary of the April 2, 2003, crash in central Iraq of a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter, call sign "Storm 6." All six soldiers on board were killed. Lou and Sue Boule lost their son, 22-year-old Spc.

Mathew G. Boule, in the crash. They traveled from their home in Dracut, to join other families for the anniversary in part because they didn't want to spend the day alone. "It is good. But it does stir up a lot of emotions," Lou Boule said.

"It's tough. Unless you've lost a child, you have no clue." The monument was placed among live oak trees outside the headquarters of the 3rd Infantry Division's 4th Brigade, the division's attack helicopter unit. All six soldiers' names are A 2004 Jeep Liberty lies on the side of Vermont Route 9 in Woodford after its unidentified female driver lost control of the vehicle Monday evening. The driver was out of the jeep and conscious when police, firefighters, and the rescue squad arrived on the scene, although she couldn't remember how she escaped her mangled jeep, said Larry McLeod, of the Bennington Rural Fire Department. The driver was taken to Southwestern Vermont Medical Center by the Bennington Rescue Squad to be treated for injuries, McLeod said.

State police are still investigating the cause of the accident. More than 300 volunteers search for missing teen "It's a beautiful young girl that's missing and everyone wants to bring her home." BRAD DENNIS Director, Klaas Kids Search Center predicted heavy snow would fall in Vermont and New York through Monday night, with as much as a foot of accumulation in some areas. Dennis said Sunday that he expected the number of searchers to drop off as the workweek began Monday. Most of the center's work during the week will focus on putting up flyers and answering calls to a hotline, he said. "I'm sure we'll coordinate a few small search teams (Monday)," he said.

"I do know we have a few volunteers coming back. If they come, we're going to put them out there in the field, one way or another." MONTGOMERY (AP) Search teams looking for missing 17-year-old Brianna Maitland of Sheldon prepared Sunday for a winter storm expected to last until Tuesday morning. "We're just trying to cover as much of the high ground as we possibly can today, and we can fall back into the valleys tomorrow," said Brad Dennis, director of the Klaas Kids Search Center, on Sunday. Dennis' group is coordinating the search and is training volunteers. About 300 people searched in teams, on foot, for Maitland in Franklin County on Friday Saturday, Dennis said.

He estimated another 100 turned out Sunday. Some groups came from as far away as New York, Montreal, and Pittsburgh, he said. "It's a beautiful young girl that's al Guard helicopter. Late last week, the Klaas Kids Search Center set up an office in the Montgomery town hall. The national group was founded by the father of Polly Klaas, who was kidnapped from her mother's California home and slain in 1W3.

The National Weather Service Court: Gun triggers tougher sentence missing and everyone wants to bring her home," said Dennis. Maitland has been missing since the night of March 19, after she finished her work as a dishwasher at the Black Lantern Inn in Montgomery. Her abandoned car was found a mile west of town on Vermont 118 the following day. It had been driven backward into an abandoned home. Maitland's parents have been putting up flyers and looking for clues near where the car was found.

Police have searched with dogs, state troopers, and a Nation .135 Depot Street Bennington; VT Open Mon-Sun 11:30 am -2 am ill IMARKETj DINNER TO CO Call ahead we'll have it readv! The Best Kept Secret in Bennington: Lunch Daily appeals court ruled. Smythe of Pittsfield, was 23 when he was arrested in May 2002. "Along with his four co-defendants, Smythe was a reputed crack cocaine dealer in the Rutland, area," the decision read. "Together, they expressed interest to undercover agents in exchanging crack cocaine, which they had, for firearms." All four, including Smythe, met with an undercover agent in Burlington and handled and looked at each of the 11 firearms the agent had brought with him, the decision read. Smythe then handed the agent a bag with 22 grams of crack cocaine in it, opened his car trunk, and the guns were placed inside, the decision read.

All four suspects were then arrested and Smythe later pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to possess crack cocaine with the intent to distribute and was given the enhanced sentence. Soup: Mulligatawny Sandwich: Spinach Chicken Wraps Chef Special: Corner of India's Spinach Tikka Masala with Chicken with Basmati Rice and Indian Vegetables M.4!M STREET NORTH BFNNINGTQNVT 802-442-6821 Plus our famous quiches, salads, Rotisserie Chickens, and specialty sandwiches! RUTLAND (AP) A federal appeals court rejected a convicted Rutland drug dealer's argument that the unloaded guns he received for crack cocaine shouldn't be considered dangerous weapons when it comes to sentencing. Derrick Smythe was sentenced in September 2003 by U.S. District Judge J. Garvan Murtha to more than eight years in prison.

His 100-month prison term included increased time behind bars because the judge applied a "dangerous weapon enhancement." Smythe's attorney appealed the enhanced sentence to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, arguing that the guns Smythe received did not increase the risk of danger because they weren't loaded and an undercover agent brought them to the scene of the drug deal. The federal appeals court in New York issued a five-page ruling last week against Smythe. "We join our sister circuits in holding that the quid pro quo exchange of drugs for firearms triggers the enhancement," the Tuesday $1.00 Off Any Sub Draft Specials Wednesday Pasta Nite Open Jukebox Come Enjoy Easter Sunday at the Ml 3 BENNINGTON STATION Serving Easter Brunch Entree menu and Specials available from 11 :00 am. until 9:00 pm.

Reservations Suggested At the corner of (802)447-1080 River Depot Streets Accommodating Bennington, Vermont Smokers in our Lounge Monday, Tuesday Wednesday Specials Prime Rib $13.9 'C If 4 Baked Stuffed Shrimp Baked Stuffed Trout $13.95 Veal Parmigian $13.95 Cajun Catfish 13.95 Herb Broiled Sea Scallops Whole Belly Fried Clams Baked Stuffed Scrod Eggplant Parmigiana if PJ'IraS" (( mmWi Linguine with Clam Sauce Cflrttc JGoo essay Kiskt! 1 U'ES SUPER SPECIALS Frog's Legs Provencale $15.95 Grilled Pork Tenderloin Roast Long Island Duck BBQ Spare Ribs TUESDAY SPECIAL Prime Rib WEDNESDAY SPECIAL BENNINGTON BANNER A MediaNews Group newspaper Telephone: (802)447-7567 Classified: (802)447-0332 Newsroom: newsbenningtonbanner.com Graphic Arts: graphicsbenningtonbanner.com The Bennington Banner (USPS050-340) is published daily except Sundays and Christmas Day for $105 a year by New England Newspapers, 425 Main Bennington, VT 05201. Periodicals postage paid at Bennington, Vermont. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to the Bennington Banner, 425 Main Bennington, VT 05201 A member of the Associated Press. Home Delivery 4 weeks $12.88, 13 weeks $36.50, 26 weeks $65.60 and 1 year $105. All subscriptions payable in advance.

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For additional copy and a Photograph, the fees are as such: Photograph: $25 Star of David: $25 Cross: $25 American Flag: $25 Other Emblem (you provide) $25 Grandchildren's Names: Additional Copy up to 150 words): $30 Additional Copy (up to 300 words): $60 To run a full obituary a second Plus an additional $10 charge tor all obituaries tor a web service. Engagement and wedding announcements must be written on the proper Banner form, which is available from the newsroom: (802)447-7567. Julia Slites The Princpi Jf VS-lli iJAa Home on Range Baked Stuffed Shrimp Datfv 7:05. 9:15: Easter Snoopy Matinee Thursday 2:00 E3 1 DaV 7:00. 9:00: redd it Pi tut jr.

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