Crow Suspected in North County Power Outage

Staff ReportsiBerkshires
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NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — An errant crow apparently caused a power outage that affected nearly 7,000 National Grid customers on Saturday morning.

While the utility company can't confirm for sure it was the bird, a crow was found at the North Adams substation, said National Grid spokeswoman Jackie Barry.

"Crows, sometimes when they alight or take off different parts of their body touch different parts of energized equipment and it can arc," she said, because of their size and wingspan. "There was no damage to the equipment but it shut off a number of breakers that are connected to three lines that serve Williamstown and North Adams."

The breakers flipped at about 10:30, affecting customers in North Adams' West End, Williamstown and south along the west side of Route 7, according to the company's power outage map. The outage lasted about 45 minutes.

The utility does put in animal deterrents but they can find their way in, said Barry, particularly squirrels.

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Two-Car Crash Closes Church Street

Staff Reports
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — A collision between two vehicles shut down a section of Church Street on Wednesday afternoon, followed shortly afterward by a three-car accident near Specialty Minerals in Adams. 
 
The North Adams crash occurred shortly after 3:30 p.m. when a GMC Denali pickup apparently collided with a Subaru Crosstrek attempting to exit from south driveway at Southview Cemetery. 
 
The truck incurred extensive front end damage and the Crosstrek damage on the front driver's side. Scanner reports initially referred to someone having a broken arm but no one was taken to the hospital. 
 
Church Street was closed between Drury High School's entrance and the skating rink for nearly an hour until tow trucks could take the vehicles away. Drivers either turned around or cut through Southview Cemetery and the skating rink parking lot. 
 
Traffic was also disrupted by the accident on the railroad tracks in Adams. No one was apparently injured in that collision either. 
 
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