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CAMPOBELLO ISLAND — A truck carrying supplies for an isolated New Brunswick island linked to the rest of Canada by U.S. roads was turned back at the international border Tuesday, says the local member of Parliament.
New Brunswick South MP John Williamson said U.S. border officials stopped the truck bound for Campobello Island, N.B., because it was carrying milk and alcohol. Importing those items into the United States is prohibited under new rules that went into effect Tuesday as part of the ongoing trade war.
The only land link to the picturesque island, best known as the summer retreat of former U.S. president Franklin Delano Roosevelt, is a bridge to the town of Lubec, Maine. From there it’s an 80-kilometres drive to the next border crossing at Calais, Maine, where the truck was stopped.
Williamson said the truck typically travels to the island every weekday, carrying mail and goods for the island’s less than 1,000 residents under a special Canada Border Services Agency licence. The truck is sealed with a customs tag guarantying it will not stop on the way to the island.
“It’s as safe as you can get,” Williamson said in an interview Wednesday.“I can make the comparison that the United States is not stopping our planes … from flying over their territory …. And this truck should be treated in a similar fashion.”
Williamson said that after a lengthy delay, the truck was released from the border crossing. It later boarded a provincial government ferry to Deer Island, N.B., where a privately run seasonal ferry carried it to Campobello.
The private ferry, however, is scheduled to cease operations for the season on Oct. 12 as it can’t handle rough winter crossings.
The island is known as a tourist retreat with some of the biggest lobster catches in the region. Its residents tend to do most of their shopping in Maine, including gassing up their vehicles because there’s no service station on the island.
Williamson said he’s been in touch with the federal government and the United States Embassy in Ottawa. At this point, he said he doesn’t know if the next truck will get through.
The Conservative MP said he told the island’s mayor that the shipping of prohibited items should be avoided until the cross-border dispute is settled.
“Campobello has always had a unique treatment when it comes to Canada-U.S. border issues,” Williamson said.
“We were able to keep the border open for residents of Campobello… during COVID-19 when the border between our two nations was closed. And even going back as far as 9/11 (the Calais and Lubec borders) remained open when every other border point in the United States was closed.”
Williamson said he’s been a longtime proponent of a permanent ferry between Deer Island and Campobello, which would give residents year-round access to the Canadian mainland. But that’s a decision for the provincial government, he said.
“I think this actually heightens the importance (for a Campobello ferry) at a time when we’re talking about our sovereignty and standing up for Canada and building infrastructure.”
The U.S. Embassy in Ottawa and the federal government did not immediately provide comment Tuesday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 30, 2026.
The Canadian Press
