Got mail? Not in Alna, postal customers, including the town office, realized in recent days. And, as of selectmen's May 8 meeting, except for parcels, officials and residents said they were having to go to the Newcastle post office and pick up their mail. Meeting participants and people interviewed May 8 said they got no notice a Postal Service vacancy had left no one to get the mail to and around town.

Resident Mary Bowers has a small business that handles water samples of regulated water systems. Bowers told Wiscasset Newspaper, she learned about the mail situation when some water samples didn’t come, nor did an important piece of mail husband Fred Bowers was expecting. “I guess what is most frustrating is, I wish that the (postal service) had had some way to notify people," she said. "Of course, I guess they can’t send something through the mail, right?

"It sure has made us realize how much we rely on this vital service," she added.

Town Clerk Sarah Perkins explained in a phone interview, while the mail hasn't been being delivered to the town office, the town still receives whatever financial or other mail people send the town. She learned of the situation via Facebook, went to the Newcastle post office and filled out a "hold mail" form. "And we're picking the mail up there. So, in essence, it has not inhibited us in any way, other than a less convenient way of getting the mail."

Third Selectman Coreysha Stone told meeting-goers, she had been calling and emailing different people that week to try to get service restored and in the meantime help all residents get their mail from Newcastle, via paperwork to let people pick up other people's mail for them; that will have to be notorized and include certain information from the mail's recipient and the one picking it up, Stone said. She also contacted Amazon to see if it, in Alna, could use a different carrier than the postal service, and was told customers, but not a community, could request that.

Wiscasset Newspaper is seeking comment from Amazon, and has messages in to the U.S. Postmaster General and a media spokesman, seeking comment and information from either.

"The town of Alna is currently experiencing a critical disruption in regular mail delivery services. While parcels continue to be delivered through a temporary substitute carrier program, letter mail including bills and other essential documents are not being delivered at this time," Stone read from a prepared statement based on the information she gathered. She said factors that contributed to the disruption included increased parcels after Amazon's lswitch to the postal service for rural deliveries; no postal service vehicle available; and the time it is taking the postal service to replace the previous carrier.

"Call everybody ... call anybody you can, call your state reps, call Congresspeople ... call, call, call," Stone said after Mike Trask, in public comment, said a fellow Alna man, Paul Crandall, had called U.S. Sen. Susan Collins' office. Wiscasset Newspaper is seeking any comment or information from the Senator's office.

May 9, a Newcastle post office employee Stone had mentioned said they were not allowed to make any statements to reporters. He said to call the district office in Portland; the paper is seeking comment from that office. Stone and others in the meeting praised the time and attention the employee in Newcastle had provided.

By the afternoon of May 9, Stone had heard back from the offices of both Maine Sen. Cameron Reny and U.S. Sen. Angus King. Stone told Wiscasset Newspaper, "I was given reassurance after speaking with someone from Angus King‘s office that they are actively working on this issue."

And Saturday, Stone provided another update. "I have heard from Susan Collins' office and they are also expressing a strong commitment to resolving this issue of mail interruption for the town of Alna on the federal level  as soon as possible."

Crandall told Wiscasset Newspaper the Newcastle post office is a 16-mile round trip for him. "I thought it was odd that I did not receive mail three days in a row" until he learned about the situation on local social media, he said. Crandall said his call to Collins' office in Augusta was "to voice my concerns. Sen. Collins' staff requested a weekly update on this issue. I will call ... every Monday to give (them) an update."

Reny, answering Wiscasset Newspaper's questions, noted Stone had contacted her "to let me know that there are issues at a local United States Postal Service (USPS) office that affect postal delivery for the entire town of Alna. We rely on the USPS to deliver essential services, including prescriptions, and it's no secret that a lapse in postal delivery could upend the lives of many in our community. Since the USPS is a federal service, I have reached out to our federal delegation to see what we can do to ensure the ongoing delivery of mail to the town of Alna. I hope to receive a response as soon as possible."