No One Injured in Monday Fire at Williams Dorm

By Stephen DravisiBerkshires Staff
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A truck from a fire restoration service is seen in front of Hubbell House at Williams College on Tuesday afternoon. 
 
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — Quick thinking by a Williams College student is being credited with helping to limit damage from a fire in a residence hall on Monday night.
 
Firefighters from Williamstown and Pownal, Vt., responded to a fire that was reported at around 9 p.m. in Hubbell House.
 
No injuries resulted from the blaze, which fire officials say could be traced to a bathroom light and ceiling fan.
 
"Hats off to the student in the room," Williamstown Fire Department Assistant Chief Mike Noyes said on Tuesday. "She found it early. They contained it by closing doors on the way out. She made a difference."
 
College officials said Tuesday that students living in the dorm were relocated to other facilities on Tuesday night and that Hubbell House likely will remain closed until the school’s summer session ends on Friday, Aug. 11.
 
A college spokesperson reported in a campuswide email that the damage to the dorm appears to be "quite limited" but the school planned to do a structural engineering assessment this week to make sure it will be ready for the fall semester.
 
Noyes said eight firefighters from Williamstown and six from Pownal responded to the third floor fire. Northern Berkshire EMS also was on standby.
 
Hubbell House is part of the Dodd neighborhood on the north side of the college's campus, near the campus cemetery. According to the Williams website, the dorm has 17 single rooms and two doubles.

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'Nobody' Better Than the Mount Greylock Class of 2024

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff

Class speaker Judge Martin offered apologies all around for the chaotic class of 2024. See more photos here.
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The class speaker for the 104 graduates of Mount Greylock Regional School apologized for the wild and crazy antics of the class of 2024. 
 
"Our class was not that easy. We came into this brand-new school like a bull in a china shop. It was crazy," Judge Martin said. Students came into the middle school from surrounding towns, and "with that mix of kids, chaos happened." 
 
They lost field trip privileges, the right to use the staircase and claimed credit for the burst pipe that flooded the new school and sent everyone home early just days before the entry into remote learning because of the pandemic.
 
"On behalf of my class, we apologize for the mess," Martin said. "But look at us now — we're no longer those middle schoolers everyone hates, no longer causing water damage in our school. And surprisingly, no longer the worst middle school class to come through Mount Greylock, which was really a hard title to take but somehow the grades below us found a way."
 
He was also sorry it took so long for the class to realize how amazing they are and apologized for taking them all for granted.
 
"We're sorry to this school and everything we put it through most importantly thank you for giving us the time to grow out of chaos and find our identity in the end," Martin said. 
 
Martin gave a shout out to Superintendent Jason McCandless, who announced his departure at the end of the school year, calling him "our favorite superintendent" to loud applause. 
 
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