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
Matthew Yanarella shows children and adults how to make cannoli at the Hunt Library on Sept. 12.
The Center on Main also welcomed a new face in 2025, with Britta Sallik joining the organization as its community connections manager.
Farther up Main Street, the David M. Hunt Library brought on Anna Pattison as its new assistant director and youth programming coordinator.
At the Congregational Church, parishioners marked the end of an era as the Rev. Rich Reifsnyder presided over his final service on Sunday, Oct. 12. Reifsnyder, who began his tenure in February 2018, said the position was initially intended to be short-term.
“A couple of Sundays here and there,” he said. “Then it sort of developed.”
In 2025, Hunt Library kept its calendar full with a wide range of well-attended programs, many of which spilled outdoors during the warmer months.
Highlights included a cannoli-making workshop with Matthew Yanarella, who wisely took the somewhat messy demonstration outside.
The library also hosted a series of outdoor summer concerts, culminating in an entertaining and unexpected open mic night on Aug. 8.
Programming extended beyond the arts and culinary pursuits as well. On April 16, Pat Campbell of Educated Canines Assisting with Disabilities (ECAD) visited the library with Titan, a golden retriever–Labrador mix, offering a demonstration of how service dogs are trained.
On March 22, Zarifa Adiba, a musician from Kabul, Afghanistan, and the author of Playing for Freedom: The Journey of a Young Afghan Girl, spoke at the library about her journey from the dangerous streets of Kabul to a new life in Flushing, New York.
Titan, a four-month-old service dog in training, greeting the Sher brothers, Eli and Noah, at the Hunt Library Wednesday, April 16. By Patrick L. Sullivan
Vehicles of all sorts filled the downtown streets twice over the summer. The Falls Village Car and Motorcycle Show on July 13 attracted more than 600 entries and more spectators than ever, according to organizer Judy Jacobs.
And the vintage race car parade on Aug. 28 wound through Salisbury and Lakeville before finishing up in downtown Falls Village. Featured this year were vintage vehicles from the early 20th century, courtesy of the Rag Time Racers, a California-based group of race car enthusiasts specializing in very early vehicles.
A heavily modified 1951 Ford F1 pickup truck on display during the Car and Motorcycle Show in July. By Patrick L. Sullivan
Over at Housatonic Valley Regional High School, work began on a “land lab” for the Agricultural Science and Technology Education Department when students cleared brush at the newly acquired, two-acre plot of open field and woodland a half mile up Warren Turnpike on Sept. 22. The area is planned to be a native forest management area meant to teach students about the health and maintenance of an ecosystem.
The Emergency Services Center hosted a special Planning and Zoning Commission meeting with the Falls Village Housing Trust and Habitat for Humanity on Nov. 5. The two housing groups provided an update on the status of affordable housing developments on River Road, with the Trust’s Jandi Hanna saying she expects to break ground in 2026. Bob Whalen of Habitat said his organization will be filing an application for either houses or duplexes some time in 2026.
Meanwhile, First Selectman Dave Barger responded to resident complaints about the town’s electric vehicle charging rates by pushing the device’s supplier for a reduction.
By the end of July, the price per kilowatt-hour had fallen from $1.45 to between 45 and 49 cents.
Affordable housing moved forward in 2025, including two homes on Perry Street in Lakeville. Jennifer Kronholm Clark (with scissors) cuts the ribbon at one of the two affordable homes on Perry Street along with (from left) John Harney, State Representative Maria Horn (D-64) and housing Commissioner Seila Mosquera-Bruno.
Residents of Salisbury and Sharon will also see changes to how household waste is handled. On Oct. 29, the governor’s office announced that the Salisbury/Sharon Transfer Station had received a state grant to implement a unit-based pricing system — commonly known as “pay as you throw” — and to expand composting operations.
The state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) awarded the transfer station $266,692 through its Sustainable Materials Management grant program. The funds will support a gradual, three-phase transition to a pay-per-bag model to replace the current $150 flat fee paid by households. Both the Salisbury and Sharon selectmen endorsed the application when it was submitted in June.
After a sustained three-year effort, the highly invasive hydrilla plant appears to be gone from East Twin Lake. “The good news is, the hydrilla is pretty much gone. We have not found anything,” George Knoecklein of Northeast Aquatic Research (NEAR), the Twin Lakes Association’s limnologist, reported during an Oct. 8 meeting of local, state and federal scientists, environmentalists and stakeholders at O’Hara’s Landing Marina.
But the town and the Lake Wononscopomuc Association will keep a ban on outside boats in effect at Lake Wononscopomuc, also known as Lakeville Lake, for the third year.
The lake has not been affected by hydrilla, and to keep it that way the boat launch is closed to watercraft from anywhere else. To make up for this, the town Grove boat launch has paddle boards, kayaks, canoes and row boats, plus trolling motors for anglers, available for rent.
Water also featured prominently in local achievements, as Salisbury’s Phoebe Conklin, 14, competed at the YMCA National Long Course Swimming Championships in Ocala, Florida. Conklin qualified for nationals in the 50-meter freestyle, 100-meter freestyle and 100-meter butterfly.
New around town: The Grassland Dessert Cafe and Lakeville Books and Stationery opened for business in Lakeville.
Meanwhile, Craig Davis and Keavy Bedell opened East Mountain House in Lakeville, an end-of-life care facility designed to accommodate up to two guests at a time. The facility welcomed its first guest in mid-September.
The Rev. Heidi Truax retired after 16 years at the helm of Trinity Episcopal Church in Lime Rock.By Patrick L. Sullivan
In August, Rev. Johan Johnson assumed leadership at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Salisbury. Johnson is also the chaplain at Salisbury School.
And in June, Rev. Heidi Truax retired from Trinity Episcopal Church in Lime Rock at the end of June after 16 years.
Before saying farewell, Truax gave the pre-race invocation June 29 when NASCAR returned to Lime Rock Park for the first time since 2011. It was billed as the largest event in modern track history with an estimated 20,000 fans attending for the weekend of pro racing.
A few months later, on Saturday, Sept. 20, a small aircraft carrying two people crashed at Lime Rock Park after making an emergency landing due to a reported mechanical failure. The area was closed while officials investigated the incident and contained a small fuel leak.
Lime Rock’s Emergency Services team was the first to respond, and director Keith Byrne said the pilot was uninjured while the passenger may have sustained minor injuries.
“It was a huge relief once we saw them getting out the plane with nothing on fire,” Byrne said of arriving on the scene.
Saturday mornings on the town Green near the White Hart have long been the time and place for political activism. This has become supercharged since the start of the second Trump administration, with “No Kings” protesters turning out in significant numbers.
The summer reading program at the Scoville Memorial Library wrapped up Aug. 23 with an emphasis on bubbles. Lots of bubbles.By Patrick L. Sullivan
The Scoville Memorial Library maintained a busy schedule of programs throughout the year, often in partnership with organizations such as the Salisbury Association. A brief and necessarily selective sampling included a June 12 presentation by Michael LaScaleia, a scientist with the Arnold Arboretum in Boston, who guided audiences through the strange and often surprising world of caterpillars and invasive plants.
Ornithologist George E. Wallace highlighted recent conservation efforts directed at bird species in Hawaii during a presentation on March 13.
And leading up to the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, the library bought multiple copies of Russell Shorto’s “Revolution Song: The Story of America’s Founding in Six Remarkable Lives” and gave them out to complement a series of Revolution-centered activities and events.
Meanwhile, the normally placid confines of the Salisbury post office were briefly disrupted when patrons arrived to find the building closed on Monday, March 17, with a notice on the locked door warning of asbestos abatement.
Postal customers were directed to the Lakeville post office for their mail.
Salisbury Postmaster Lisa Hoage said the floor of the Salisbury facility had been in poor condition for some time. The matter was dealt with quickly and the post office was back up and running in a matter of days.
HVRHS’s Victoria Brooks navigates traffic on her way to the hoop. She scored a game-high 17 points against Nonnewaug Tuesday, Dec. 16.
The atmosphere was intense in Ed Tyburski Gym with frequent fouls, traps and steals on the court. Fans of both sides heightened the energy for the return of varsity basketball.
HVRHS started with a lead in the first quarter. The score balanced out by halftime and then Nonnewaug caught fire with 20 points in the third quarter. Despite a strong effort by HVRHS in the last quarter, the Chiefs held on to win.
Housatonic’s Victoria Brooks scored a game-high 17 points and Olivia Brooks scored 14. Carmela Egan scored 8 points with 14 rebounds, 5 steals and 4 assists. Maddy Johnson had 10 rebounds, 4 steals, 2 assists and 2 points, and Aubrey Funk scored 1 point.
Nonnewaug was led by Gemma Hedrei with 13 points. Chloe Whipple and Jayda Gladding each scored 11 points. Sarah Nichols scored 9, Bryce Gilbert scored 5, Gia Savarese scored 2 and Jazlyn Delprincipe scored 1.
