Plane Crashes in Sheffield; Passengers, Pilot Escape Uninjured

By Tom ConklinBerkshire News Network
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SHEFFIELD, Mass. — A Sheffield neighborhood was evacuated Tuesday afternoon after a single-engine plane went down in a field and caught fire.

Five people aboard a small New York-bound plane escaped serious injury after it crashed and caught fire. State police and the Federal Aviation Administration say the single-engine Cessna 208 went down at about 3 p.m. at the intersection of Route 41 and Kelsey Road.

Sheffield Emergency Management Director Ed McCormick was on site Tuesday, and Berkshire News Network correspondent Meg Bennett caught up with him at the scene. McCormick told Bennett that passengers were uninjured.


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The state police said the neighborhood was evacuated as a precaution because there were chemicals on board the aircraft.

The people on board were part of cleaning crew headed back to Saratoga Spring, N.Y. after completing a job in Long Island, N.Y., according to a report from WNYT Channel 13.


 The area was cordoned off while a determination was made as to if it was safe for the Fire Department to go in to extinguish the fire.

The FAA says the plane is registered to North American Flight Services, based in Ballston Spa, N.Y.

The last air incident in South County was in March, when a helicopter being used to run transmission lines for Western Massachusetts Electric Co. came down on Tyringham Road. No one was injured and the FAA is investigating the incident.

Hear full details of Tuesday's single engine plane crash in the morning on WBEC AM and FM, WSBS, WUPE and WNAW.
If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Multiple Departments Respond to Lanesborough Structure Fire

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — Multiple fire departments responded to a structure fire off Narragansett Avenue on Wednesday afternoon. 

The Fire Department received a call from the owner of 6 Bangor St. reporting a smoke and flames at around 1:44 p.m.

Firefighters arriving on scene reported heavy smoke emanating from the the 1940s single-family ranch home in the thickly settle neighborhood.

The blaze was brought under control in less than an hour and there were no civilian or firefighter injuries. 

"The homeowner was outside doing some work, evidently, opened the door when she came back in the house, and there were flames and smoke, so she backed out and called us, and that's all we know right now," Deputy Fire Chief Glen Storie said around 2:35 p.m. 

The fire was out at that time, and first responders observed "quite a bit of damage" to the home. The cause is still under investigation. 

Lanesborough, Cheshire, and Pittsfield departments responded to the scene, and Hancock covered the station during the call. 

"The first crew in knocked the fire right down with the first engine," Storie said. 

Smoke could be seen coming from the back of the home. Part of Narragansett Avenue and Bangor Avenue were blocked off while firefighters battled the blaze. 

 

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