Patch-iversary: 10 Stories That Have Rocked North Andover Patch

Patch turns 1 year old today. In the past year, we've covered a lot -- more than 2,150 articles worth -- and the coverage has formed a rich picture of life in North Andover. Some great, some bad, and lots in between.

Here are 10 stories that have rocked North Andover Patch in the past 365 days.

In the fall of 2010, Fire Chief Andrew Melnikas approached the Board of Selectmen with a dire warning. Two of the town's fire trucks were not functioning He warned that relying on help from neighboring communities could use up valuable time during a fire and said that buying the trucks would save the town money in the long run.

Selectmen held a Special Town Meeting, at which voters

In what had started out as an uneventful campaign, North Andover's congressman, John Tierney, saw his personal life embroiled in scandal when manage a bank account into which her brother was funneling money from an illegal offshore gambling operation.

Republican challenger Bill Hudak and hammered away at Tierney about it for the rest of the campaign. The state Republican Party even into Tierney. And Tierney went on the offensive, hammering away at Hudak over a and yard signs depicting the president as a terrorist.

In the end, Hudak's attacks were not enough to unseat Tierney, and

The Scarlet Knights football team marched forward last fall and took on Masconomet in the Thanksgiving game, the Knights and a nine game winning streak.

And come Thanksgiving, the Knights kept that streak.

Unfortunately, that winning streak would not hold them through their next adventure, and the Knights ended their season with a in the playoffs the next week.

Last winter was an eventful one weather-wise. and it didn't seem to let up. A Christmas week and buried North Andover in a white blanket of snow.

By mid-January, the had already used up By early February, the town was And there were still several weeks of winter to come.

In February, North Andover was rocked by scandal when longtime wrestling coach David Catricone was arrested for possession of child pornography.

At Castricone's arraignment, including reports about Castricone's plans for a thong factory and allegations that he had made frequent visits to the girls' locker room. That case is pending.

Determined not to linger in the shadow of scandal, the Scarlet Knights wrestling team marched forward. Assistant Coach Carl Cincotta took the reins and led the Knights to and earned a ticket to the state title match.

Then, in stunning glory, keeping their state title.

In March, North Andover had There were two seats open on the Board of Selectmen and one seat open on the School Committee.

The candidates The two parties held their straw polls, and the while the

On election day, But after the polls closed, that changed. The shocking results revealed that

Fresh off the excitement of the election and still reeling from the wrestling coach scandal, North Andover was rocked by scandal again -- this time in the form of tasty drug-infused confections.

In early April, school officials shut down the junior prom early after discovering that several students had become ill after eating pot brownies.

The superintendent later announced

But with a lack of strong evidence and no cooperation from witnesses, authorities eventually announced that they

In the spring, the town was surprised again by the announcement that

Selectmen to be the interim police chief while the search for a permanent replacement progressed. After months of an assessment center process and selectmen voted to

Toward the end of summer, North Andover, along with most of the nation's east coast, was rocked by Hurricane Irene.

The town braced itself as it became clear that Then the town keeping local stores busy as residents stocked up on supplies.

Irene brought havoc and destruction to much of the east coast. By the time it reached the Merrimack Valley, But the storm to knock down several branches and tree limbs

9/11 A Decade Later

In Septmeber, America stopped to remember the tragedy of Sept. 11, 2001, and reflect on how that day changed the nation.

Locally, residents recalled as well as

One local firefighter recalled what it was like And one local couple recalled being at the

On the anniversary itself, the town held a refined,