Swift Storm Knocks Out Power

 NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Several sections of the county were hit by a fast-moving storm that downed trees and power lines. At 9 p.m., Western Mass. Electric Co. was reporting some 22,000 customers out of power in Berkshire, Hampden, Hampshire and Franklin counties.

The wind split this tree in Williamstown.

Nearly all of New Ashford was reported out of power and nearly half of nearby Lanesborough. The hilltowns, including Becket and Washington, weathered the storm better, with no reported outages.

National Grid reported minor, scattered outages throughout, with about 31 customers out of power on Florida Mountain.

One our readers reported traffic lights out in Pittsfield shortly after the storm moved through and Cranwell Resort sent a picture of a large tree down in its driveway. "Tree down on road on our property — Our topnotch crew is already on the scene, removing debris," the Lenox resort tweeted us. A section of a large tree in Williamstown near the Dunkin' Donuts on Main Street also came down in the storm.

"Every county in WMECo's service area is affected, with the most customers without power in the towns of Sunderland, Agawam, Ludlow, Springfield, West Springfield, Hadley and Southampton," according to a press statement from WMECo.

WMECo reminds residents to treat all wires as live and stay a minimum of 10 feet away. Even getting close to an energized wire can have deadly consequences. Call 911 or WMECo immediately.

Home generators should always be installed by a qualified electrician. Improperly installed generators can backfeed into our lines, which could be deadly to our workers.

New Williamstown Home Destroyed by Fire

A fire on Wednesday destroyed a large single-family home on Pine Cobble Road in Williamstown that was still under construction.

The Williamstown Fire Department was aided by firefighters from Clarksburg, Lanesborough and Pownal and Stamford, Vt., as well as local and Adams Forest Wardens.

The fire was reported about 4:30 and witnesses described seeing black smoke above the hillside development from points in North Adams.  No one was apparently in the house at the time.

The weather was hot and breezy and the fire soon spread to the brush. Firefighters spent several hours battling the blaze.

Video taken by someone at the scene was forwarded to iBerkshires. We appreciate any further information. Another video can be found on our Facebook page.

Pedestrian Injured in Williamstown

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — A 66-year-old pedestrian was hit by a vehicle Monday morning while trying to cross Main Street.

Police said the man, whose name was not released, walked into the street without warning just east of Cole Avenue where the road curves. He was not in a sidewalk and was hit by a 1994 Oldsmobile driven by Michael Richardello of North Adams.

The man was taken to North Adams Regional Hospital by paramedics with Village Ambulance Service with injuries that did not appear to be life-threatening. 

The accident is under investigation but police say they have determined that Richardello was not at fault.
 

Breaking & Entering Reported in Williamstown

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. - Williamstown Police are urging residents to remain vigilant after another breaking and entering was reported over the weekend.

Police responded to a residence at Stetson Court on Saturday evening, Feb. 13, at about 6:27 after the caretaker called to report somone inside the building. The individual fled the scene without confronting the caretaker, said police, and a search was conducted with the help of the K-9 unit's Blue and Officer Michael Ziemba.

The suspect was not found but police were contacted again at about 10:32 about a past burglary on Chapin Court.

Both incidents were forced entries and are under investigation. Police encourage residents to report any suspicious activitings

Break-Ins Reported in Williamstown

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — A Cobbleview Road residence was broken into late Wednesday afternoon as police were investigating an earlier burglary on the same road.

Police were at the first residence at about 5 p.m. when a neighbor reported the motion lights coming on at another Cobbleview Road home. As officers approached the residence, they heard what sounded like a person running from the area into the woods. A search was conducted by second-shift officers, including Officer Michael Ziemba and Blue, and North Adams Police officers but no suspect was found.

The house had been forcibly entered and property stolen. The state police Crimes Services Section was contacted to assist in the investigation.

Williamstown Police are asking residents to be alert to unusual or suspicious vehicles and to contact the police at 413-458-5733 to report any suspicious activity.