GREAT BARRINGTON — Fire crews overnight have been monitoring a slow-moving, but growing 100-acre wildfire on East Mountain, a remote and forested area, that appears to have started around midnight Tuesday. No injuries have been reported.
Authorities said the wildfire poses no immediate threat to public property, but they urged residents to remain vigilant and avoid the area. Authorities have named it the Butternut Fire. About 50 to 75 crew members were on the ground with another 20 working at the incident command center.
"Though the fire looks very dangerous to the general public, it is not," said Ryan Brown, the Lee fire chief who led a morning press conference at the Great Barrington Fairgrounds area.
Fire crews were stationed at areas to ensure no structures are threatened.
No evacuation orders have been set.
As of 11 a.m. Tuesday, smoke continued to rise over the mountain to the east of downtown. The wildfire was burning trees and ground clutter; firefighters had not actively begun fighting the fire because the area is difficult to access, but scouts and drones were monitoring the wildfire's progress. Accessing the area requires hiking on foot, according to authorities at the Great Barrington Fire Station.
Multiple agencies, including the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency, were on the scene and monitoring the situation.
Another angle of the fire, which authorities have named the Butternut Fire.Photo by Stephen P. Willig, courtesy of The Berkshire Eagle
The fire comes as a severe drought in the region and across the state has increased the risk of wildfire.
Authorities have been warning the public against any outdoor fires or anything that might cast a spark. Massachusetts is in a so-called Red Flag Warning, the highest warning level for wildfire potential because of dry conditions, wind and warm temperatures.
A Great Barrington Fire Department spokesperson said firefighters are using a drone to help determine the extent of the fire.
Ryan Brown, the Lee fire chief who is handling public information, said the terrain is difficult and that the vegetation is dry. Brown said that a tornado came through the area several years ago and left a lot of ground clutter that may be fueling the wildfire.
"The rain the other day did not help," Brown said.
The rate of the fire's spread was about 60 feet per hour, Brown said.
As of 7:45 a.m., the Great Barrington Fire Department was deploying resources to address the situation. Structural firefighting crews have been strategically staged in case their support is required.
Fire Chief Scott Turner and Police Sargent Adam Carlotto are working closely with Town Manager Mark Pruhenski to coordinate efforts, according to a news release sent by the town.
This wildfire adds to the more than 500 fires reported across Massachusetts since Oct. 1.
The Brookside Bridge, which had been closed to traffic for structural reasons, was re-opened on Tuesday morning to provide emergency access and resident safety due to the East Mountain fire in Great Barrington.
As of 11 a.m. Tuesday, smoke continued to rise over the mountain to the east of downtown.Photo by Ben Garver, The Berkshire Eagle
Marina Kotchoubey at the Ian Ingersoll Cabinetmakers showroom in West Cornwall.
Sometime in the mid-2010s, with grandkids accumulating, he started to picture a future away from the shop. It was getting time to step away and enjoy what he insists is one of the most beautiful parts of the world: the Northwest Corner of Connecticut. But just because he was aging out of the job didn’t mean his employees needed to as well.
Ingersoll recognized the home he’d built for these creative experts — a place where they, too, could make their livings building masterworks of fine furniture. So, for his next big challenge, he began the search for someone he could trust to take what he’d made and build it even better. After searching for quite some time, he decided to look next door.
Technically, Marina Kotchoubey grew up in Manhattan but she spent weekends and summers in Cornwall, Connecticut, feeling more at home amongst the woods and rivers of Litchfield County than in the subways of the city. But business opportunities kept her away from making her permanent home in the region.
After college, Kotchoubey moved to Paris to run the U.S. branch of children’s fashion brand Petit Bateau. At the young age of 23, it was a job she wasn’t ready for. But that’s where Kotchoubey finds her creative challenges.
By pairing the experience of her peers and coworkers with her razor-sharp intuition, Kotchoubey ran the brand with seamless expertise despite her lack of experience. She jumped into the deep end of the pool and challenged herself to swim. For seven years, she swam like an Olympian.
After her time in France, she felt ready to finally make a home in Cornwall. With no career or even job lined up, she approached several local businesses around the Northwest Corner and offered to help out in a consulting capacity. After years of challenging conditions in the deep end, this seemed like calm, shallow waters. And that’s when her neighbor, Ian Ingersoll, approached her.
At first, he was looking for a little help with business issues. Ian Ingersoll Cabinetmakers was doing well, but a younger customer base of homeowners and interior designers weren’t as keen on classic Shaker furniture. Though the studio had already started to diversify their offerings, Kotchoubey was instrumental in implementing a smooth transition to other styles of furniture. Ingersoll saw that, thanks to her breadth of experience and enterprising vision, she could take the baton and run with it.
In 2025, he handed her the keys.
When she took the reins, Kotchoubey saw two new ways forward. She could shake things up and pivot the shop toward installations and on-site custom builds. This would require new equipment, new clients and possibly new craftsmen. The other path leaned into what she had already helped the company do: expand its offerings and cater to a new, less traditionally minded clientele.
With confidence in her craftsmen and the reputation their work has garnered, she resisted the urge to pivot and instead relied on what makes Ian Ingersoll Cabinetmakers great — high-quality furniture made by expert craftsmen.
The journey isn’t quite as easy as it sounds. There are great challenges that come with being a young woman in an older man’s world. Firstly, she had to win the respect of her employees, despite not sharing in their skills and know-how. She accomplished that, once again, by listening to the experts and not forcing her vision on a remarkably capable group. The woodworking side of things might be new, but her ability to swim in unknown waters has proven unflappable throughout her career.
Now in its sixth decade of operations, Ian Ingersoll Cabinetmakers shows no sign of slowing down. Kotchoubey’s leadership is finding new customers by expanding on the reputation of the work. With increasing demand and a steadfast commitment to slow, quality jobs, don’t expect to pop into their West Cornwall showroom and leave with a piece anytime soon. Lead times on custom creations range from 12 to 16 weeks, but if things keep going the way they are, that wait could get even longer.
To see some of the company’s offerings, visit ianingersoll.com.
Marina Kotchoubey at the Ian Ingersoll Cabinetmakers.Photo by D.H. Callahan
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