The mayor of Campobello Island says he doesn’t know what next steps look like after American border agents stopped a truck headed for the island from entering the U.S.
“Nobody knows because ... we’re dealing with another country,” Harvey Matthews told CTV Your Morning on Friday. “They don’t have to let us do anything if they don’t want to.”
Matthews said he received some confirmation on Thursday night that the situation might be resolved, “but it’s not a sure thing.”
“I’m hoping maybe after this afternoon we won’t have to worry about it,” he said. “But if it isn’t, I don’t know what we’re going to do.”
The truck was stopped on Tuesday by U.S. border agents at the St. Stephen-Calais border crossing between New Brunswick and Maine.
The only way to access the island year-round is by bridge via Lubec, Maine, which is about 80 kilometres by road from the border crossing.
The truck has a permit from U.S. Customs and Border Protection, allowing it to transport imported goods over the border.
Agents denied the truck driver entry as the vehicle was carrying milk and “over 1,000 bottles of spirits,” according to the U.S. border agency.
Importing those items into the United States is prohibited under new rules that went into effect Tuesday as part of the ongoing trade war.
“It kind of threw everybody for a loop,” Matthews said.
After being refused entry into the U.S., the truck boarded a provincial government ferry to Deer Island, N.B., and from there took a privately run ferry to Campobello Island.
“He’s on his regular runs as usual, but he just won’t be able to bring those items,” Matthews said of the truck driver.
Vikas Vakkanti, manager of Campobello Value Foods told CTV News Atlantic on Thursday that he estimated it costs $450 to ship via ferry and that he’d have to exclude dairy and alcohol from the shipments.
The private ferry is scheduled to cease operations for the season on Oct. 12 as it can’t handle rough winter crossings.
Matthews said he has been in touch with New Brunswick Premier Susan Holt about extending the ferry’s operations, to keep a viable shipment route open.
“I don’t know if that’s going to fix everything,” he said, pointing to the cumbersome nature of the commute for the driver.
But he’s optimistic a resolution will come through.
“It just seems like ... you go a few months and it’s something else,” he said. “When’s it ever going to end?”
With files from CTV News Atlantic’s Melanie Price and The Canadian Press
