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North Adams Blaze Blamed on Oil Burner
 Firefighters quickly doused a small oil burner fire on South Street on Friday night. |
The first 911 call occurred around 9 p.m. after the homeowners were alerted when their smoke alarms went off. A second call, a few minutes later reporting the same fire, confirmed it.
The home owners met Police Officer Mike Goodson in their front yard, then took him around back and down the basement stairs where the fire was. Two fire trucks responded to the scene and quickly contained a small blaze in the basement.
"It was a small basement fire that the oil burner caused," said Fire Director Stephen Meranti at the scene.
The fire trucks blocked up both ends of the street, which connects Spring Street and Washington Avenue, and police detoured traffic.
"The smoke alarms did their job to — keep a small fire, small that is," said Meranti. "Keeping a small fire small is a goal firemen and police officers hope to quickly establish in these situations."
There were no injuries but large fans were brought in to take ventilate the house and eject the smoke (and its strong smell) left behind.
Meranti said it was not clear why the fire started at the oil burner but he recommended residents get winter heating appliances anually checked, "whether it be gas, electric or oil," to prevent accidents.
The road was reopened before 10 p.m.
Superior Court Briefs: November 28 - December 1
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Michelle Lynn Rose, 43, of Pittsfield was sentenced to concurrent two year sentences in the Berkshire County House of Correction after pleading guilty on Nov. 22 to single counts of larceny over $250 and making false entries into corporation records.
Rose took approximately $70,000 from Shedd Plumbing and Heating between December 14, 2006 and July 2, 2009.
Ryan Yon, 23, of Pittsfield has not guilty pleas entered on his behalf on single counts of armed robbery while masked and possession of heroin.
Yon was ordered to be held on $10,000 cash or $100,000 surety bail. He allegedly robbed Angelina's Submarine Shop on Wahconah Street on Nov. 1.
Martin Parks, 21, of Dalton had not guilty pleas entered on his behalf on single counts of armed assault with intent to murder and assault and battery by means of a dangerous weapon, causing serious bodily injury.
Parks will be held on $100,000 bail. Parks allegedly stabbed 45-year-old Kevin Potter outside of WOJO's Bar in Adams on Oct. 15.
J.T. Holley, 23, of Pittsfield had not guilty pleas entered on his behalf on single counts of possession of heroin with intent to distribute, possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, illegal possession of a firearm, possession of ammunition without a identification card and possession of a firearm with a prior conviction for a violent crime or serious drug offense.
Holley was ordered to be held on $10,000 cash or $100,000 surety bail. The charges stem from a disturbance and subsequent motor vehicle stop in Pittsfield on Oct. 15.
Richard Sifton, 29, of Florida pleaded guilty to a single count of conspiracy to violate drug laws.
Sifton was sentenced to 18 months of a two and a half year sentence at the Berkshire County House of Correction and placed on two years probation. The incident occurred in the county between November 1, 2010 and November 25, 2010.
North Adams Police: Christmas Ornaments Being Stolen
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Christmas ornaments across the city were stolen in the wee hours of Monday morning. Police say three homes on East Main Street, between Gallup Street and Union Street, had decorations stolen off their lawn and two iBerkshires employees, one who lives on Curran Highway in Adams and another who lives on Porter Street, are reporting the same.
Residents who reported the crime told police that there were between six to eight people leaving the area and that an SUV, possibly silver, was also involved. The first report came in just after midnight, police said.
Adams Police have not received any reports of missing decorations.
Any information regarding the stolen items should be reported to the North Adams Police Department at napdtips@northadams-ma.gov.
Vermont Police Investigating Double Fatal Shooting
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Police say Benjamin Birch, 39, of Readsboro was killed in a hunting accident near Howe Pond. Birch was reportedly chasing a deer with two other hunters when one of his companions, Timothy Bolognani, accidently shot him. Bolognani, 49, of Readsboro, was so distraught, said police, he used his rifle to take his own life.
Police and ambulance personnel originally responded to a report of one injured man, then two men, discovered at a camp in the small town. Unconfirmed reports had said there were two men, one in his 20s and the other in 40s, both dead of gunshot wounds.
This is the second tragedy in barely a year for the Bolognani family. Timothy Bolognani's 18-year-old daughter, Jessica, was killed in a snowmobile accident last January. Bolognani is the son of Betty Bolognani, former state representative.
While accidental, this is also the second double-fatality connected to guns in the last year in Readsboro. On Dec. 2, 2010, 47-year-old Robert Finley shot and killed his father, James Finley, 69, before turning the gun on himself in a domestic fight.
No further information was immediately available.
Updated and rewritten throughout, 11 p.m., Nov. 26.
Police Nab Suspect in Multiple Robberies
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Raheem Garett, 26, is charged with armed robbery (a firearm) and being masked during the robbery. His alleged accomplice, Laura Methe, 21, of Washington, the driver of the sport utility vehicle in which policy say he fled, is facing the same charges, in addition to motor vehicle charges including failure to stop for a police officer.
On Tuesday, Nov. 22, at approximately 10:50 p.m., the Police Department responded to a report of an armed robbery at the Domino's Pizza 321 1/2 Elm St.
Witnesses described the robber as a black man with a black hooded sweat shirt, wearing a mask and brandishing a gun. The suspect left in a white SUV. Officers responding to the area located the vehicle traveling on Dorchester Avenue. The operator refused to stop when signaled, and continued at a high rate of speed through the neighborhood streets, finally stopping when blocked in on Parkside Avenue.
During the chase, the passenger was observed throwing a gun out of the window. A BB gun and a mask were recovered along the route the vehicle traveled.
During the investigation, evidence linked the two individuals to the robberies at Domino's on Sept. 1 and Convenience Plus on Oct. 3, as well as attempted robberies at Dunkin' Donuts on Nov. 1 and Lipton Mart on Nov. 21.
Anyone who was in the Elm Street area between 10:30 and 11 p.m. on Tuesday night and may have observations relevant to the investigation is urged to call the Pittsfield Police Department at 413-448-9700.
