Pittsfield Fire Knocks Down Christmas Day Blaze

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A first-responder caught an image of the fire before the Fire Department got to the scene.
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — A Christmas Day fire on East Mill Street displaced a family of five. 
 
Deputy Chief Daniel Garner reported that the Fire Department was alerted to the blaze at 23 East Mill at 4:39 p.m. on Dec. 25. Firefighters found flames venting from windows on the first floor of the 2 1/2 story wood frame structure. 
 
One crew conducted a primary search to ensure the three-unit building was evacuated while others worked to extinguish the fire in the first-floor kitchen. The fire was knocked down and under control within 20 minutes but the room sustained fire damage and the first floor smoke damage. Garner put the damage estimate as less than $2,000. 
 
The cause of the fire was not yet determined and the family was being assisted by the Red Cross. There were no injuries reported. 

Tags: structure fire,   

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Berkshire Concrete Appeals Fines; Residents Demand More Aggressive Actions

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
DALTON, Mass. — The snow has melted and the air is warming — a time when residents open their windows and step outside to enjoy the sun. But for those living near Berkshire Concrete's unauthorized dig site, they say the warmer weather means something else: more sand.
 
Less than a month into spring, the town received its first dust complaint after an overnight storm on March 31 blew sand and fine dust onto Raymond Drive, sending air monitoring data off the charts.
 
"The piles and vast open areas are once again exposed after the snow melt, and it is definitely blowing right into our neighborhoods," said Clean Air Coalition member Lisa Pugh. 
 
"We now have concrete data to prove this. The delays are continuing and the neighborhood continues to be negatively affected.
 
During the storm, the air monitors, placed around town showed particulate matter numbers recorded at over 5,000 units, and at times reaching 10,000. 
 
"These high readings continued for hours," she said. 
 
Levels above 155 are considered unhealthy and according to the Environmental Protection Agency these numbers are considered an immediate public health emergency, Pugh said.  
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