We thought the readers would like to know, so Stockbridge Updates asked the Stockbridge Fire Chief: What was it like for first responders on March 7th?
The Stockbridge Fire Chief said, “The wind was incredible and I’m glad we didn’t have any accidents with injuries because of it.” The Chief continued…
From the Desk of the Vincent Jan Garofoli, Chief, Stockbridge Fire Department
In the late evening hours of Monday, March 7th, 2022, the Town of Stockbridge was hit hard by a wind event. The Stockbridge Fire Department in conjunction with the Stockbridge Highway and Police Departments were out late into the night answering calls for downed trees and branches. Many of the downed trees involved live power lines leaving many town residents without power for several hours and closing many normal routes of travel for motorists.
At one point Route 183 was closed in Interlaken and in two places in Glendale making it nearly impassable for any motorist until later the next morning. Route 7 (East Street) was closed for approximately 12 hours due to a very large pine tree damaging the power lines and a utility pole in the area of #5 East Street. This had a very significant impact on those going to and from work for that evening and early the next morning.
Overall, the damage from this wind event was significant but did not result in any injuries or motor vehicle accidents that the Stockbridge Fire Department responded to. The dedicated men and women of all three Town agencies worked together seamlessly together even well into the overnight hours. We tried, and in many cases, succeeded in restoring the Town of Stockbridge back to normal.
From one of our brave and generous members of the Fire Department, EMT/Lieutenant Jay Rhind…
The windstorm that raged through Stockbridge on Monday, March 7, for the most part, caught our town (and neighboring towns) off guard. The weather report for Monday afternoon warned of high winds throughout the night and into Tuesday morning. What we weren’t prepared for was that the winds would blow from zero to 40-50 mph in such a short amount of time. From our house on Route 183 in Interlaken, we could hear the wind as it roared up one side of West Stockbridge Mountain and down the other towards our house. Outdoors at that time it went from relatively calm to howling winds and hearing the sounds of trees being blown over and transformers exploding up and down Route 183; all this happened in the matter of seconds. Due to several trees and wires down on Route 183 near Quiet Knoll Road, there was no electricity in that area until Tuesday afternoon.
I’m not sure if Stockbridge residents are fully aware of the extent of our training and all that Stockbridge Fire Department (SFD)does. We have a Dive Team that dives in all conditions, including water with zero visibility and in rapid moving water. During the winter we train/dive under the ice.
The SFD Dive Team trains year-round. In May, for four days, we plan to attend an intensive diver training course sponsored by the Pittsfield Fire Dept. This will give us (Stockbridge divers, Pittsfield FD divers, and Sheriff’s Office Dive Team) the ability to train together as one cohesive team to better serve Berkshire County.
The SFD responds 24/7. Snow’s coming — don’t worry — we’re here.
