Emergency Drill Planned in North Adams July 29

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NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Emergency response organizations will be participating in a Northern Berkshire emergency operations community drill on Tuesday, July 29, in a vacant lot located on the Curran Memorial Highway.

The emergency drill will simulate a mass casualty incident in the community in which numerous agencies would respond. The drill will include Berkshire Medical Center and its Northern Berkshire Satellite Emergency Facility, the Police and Fire departments from North Berkshire and North Adams, Adams, Village, County and Action Ambulance services.

The drill is designed to test the response of local emergency operations organizations in the event of a real incident.
Area residents may notice increased activity around the Curran Highway near the North Adams/Adams line and at the BMC Satellite Emergency Facility, and radio chatter during the drill. The drill will not have any impact on response to an actual emergency, should one occur.

If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

MassDOT Warns of Toll-fee Smishing Scam

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Department of Transportation was alerted that a text message-based scam, also known as smishing, is fraudulently claiming to represent tolling agencies from across the country. The scammers are claiming to represent the tolling agency and requesting payment for unpaid tolls.

The targeted phone numbers seem to be chosen at random and are not uniquely associated with an account or usage of toll roads.

Customers who receive an unsolicited text, email, or similar message suggesting it is from EZDriveMA or another toll agency should not click on the link.

EZDriveMA customers can verify a valid text notification in several ways:

  • EZDriveMA will never request payment by text
  • All links associated with EZDriveMA will include www.EZDriveMA.com

The FBI says it has received more than 2,000 complaints related to toll smishing scams since early March and recommends individuals who receive fraudulent messages do the following:

1. File a complaint with the  Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov; be sure to include:

The phone number from where the text originated.
The website listed within the text

2. Check your account using the toll service's legitimate website.

3. Contact the toll service's customer service phone number.

4. Delete any smishing texts received.

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