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W W W. M A I N E B I Z . B I Z 19 J U N E 1 0 , 2 0 2 4 F O C U S L E W I S T O N / A U B U R N / W E S T E R N M A I N E Just-in-Time. Small said people were banging on the doors and windows begging to be let in. "We had to decide whether or not to let people in," she recalls. "It is a big decision to make because you don't know who you are opening the door to. But you could also sense the danger was real and the panic was real. We let a few women come in that were pounding on the door and after that, we were told to stay away and to not let anyone else in." Small said that it all happened so quickly since her restaurant is just doors down from the bowling alley. In minutes, the police were at the scene and the restaurant and started taking groups of people out to their cars. In the days after the shootings, some restaurants closed and those that stayed open, with owners hoping at least some people would come in. But for many restaurants that wasn't the case. "e following day, when we went to the restau- rant, the road was barricaded. Anytime we needed to get into our restaurant, we needed security clear- ance," says Small. "We had no idea when we were going to be allowed back into the restaurant or even reopen due to the road being blocked." Legends remained closed for four to five days after the incident, Small says. "I voiced my concerns to the FBI about the trag- edy, obviously. But how do I keep my business afloat and get my employees back in," says Small. "e FBI worked with us to move the barricade and encouraged news reporters and other law enforcement to come in and have lunch with us. "But that was only temporary, and then everything was gone. e reporters were gone, the barricade was gone, and there was just silence." e morning after the shootings, restaurant owner Paul Landry walked into his Fish Bones restaurant downtown, turned on the lights and saw a sea of tables left just as they were when the police evacuated the SALES@WAREBUTLER.COM Ware-Butler will supply products to earthwork and concrete jobs, roads/ bridges/construction jobs, grow businesses, storage units, livestock farms, health centers and commercial buildings of all types, infrastructure projects such as sand-salt sheds and municipal buildings, etc. WAREBUTLER.COM CONTACT US for your non-residential and commercial construction needs statewide in Maine. Put our statewide buying power and experienced sales team to work for you! Fabric / Pipe / Culverts / Styrofoam insulation / Construction lumber Sheet goods / Millwork / Metal roofing and siding products PRODUCTS OFFERED: AND MORE! C O N T I N U E D O N F O L L OW I N G PA G E » Melinda Small, owner of Legends Sports Bar & Grill, is offering discounts to try to restore business. P H O T O / C O U R T E S Y, M E L I N DA S M A L L

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