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Pittsfield and Stockbridge firefighters search Silver Lake in boats for a person who went missing and was last reported going into the lake. Searchers have been at the Pittsfield lake most of the day.
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A helicopter circles the lake, located off East Street.
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Personnel from a number of city departments and surrounding communities were working the search. Silver Lake Boulevard was closed off.

First-Responders Search for Missing Person at Silver Lake

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
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Mayor Linda Tyer is updated on the search Tuesday afternoon. 

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Police and multiple other first-responder units have been searching Silver Lake for a missing person for the majority of the day.

The police got a report around noon on Tuesday that there may be a person in the lake and set up a command center on location within the hour.  

Cpt. Gary Traversa said police have evidence to support that this may have been the person's last location.

"We're still looking. Obviously, this is a combination of missing persons, response to a family concern, so, no, we don't have anything concrete," he said late Tuesday afternoon.

"We are doing this by the numbers, utilizing the additional resources that we have at our disposal, and they've been kind of building off once we exhaust one avenue or we've gotten to a certain point be bring in another resource."

Search and rescue boats could be seen in the water as well as a helicopter circling the area.

Silver Lake Boulevard is blocked off for the search, which is being conducted by personnel from the Police and Fire Departments, the Berkshire Dive Team, Berkshire County Sheriff's Office, the Hinsdale Rehab Unit, and Stockbridge Fire Department, with an ambulance on standby.


Traversa said the first responders will be there until the agencies say that there is nothing else they can do. The person reportedly went missing within the last 24 hours.

Mayor Linda Tyer was at the scene later in the afternoon. The police said she wanted to come down and provide any support she could for the agencies there.

Earlier in the afternoon, a despondent individual was atop the bridge that goes over Fourth Street threatening to jump off. Responders, including a clinician, were able to talk the person off the bridge and transport them to the crisis department.

The incident was resolved by around 2:15 p.m.

During this time, that area of Fourth street was blocked off.

 


Tags: missing persons,   search,   

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Pittsfield Officials: Unlimited Trash Not Sustainable, Toters Offer Cost-Savings

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Unlimited trash pickup is not sustainable and will lead to higher taxes, city officials say.

Mayor Peter Marchetti began public outreach on Monday on the proposed five-year contract with Casella Waste Management for solid waste and recyclables. Older residents packed into the Ralph J. Froio Senior Center for the first of three community meetings.

On the table is a move to automated pickup utilizing 48-gallon toters, which would be at no cost to residents unless they require additional toters and would save the city $80,000 per year.

The goal is to execute a contract by July 1, the start of the fiscal year.

"Trash collection is not free. You're already paying for it as part of your taxes that you pay. In this administration, in this proposal there is no 'I'm looking to create a trash tax,''' Marchetti said, explaining that trash pickup for fiscal year 2025 is around $5.1 million and has doubled since he first served on the council in 2002.

"So we need to find a way to stem the cost of trash."

Some of the seniors praised the new plan while others had concerns, asking questions like "What is going to happen to the trash cans we have now?" "What if I live in rural Pittsfield and have a long driveway?" and "What happens if my toter is stolen?"

"I've lived in a lot of other places and know this is a big innovation that is taking place over the last 20,30 years," one resident said. "It's worked in most places. It's much better than throwing bags of garbage on the side of the road."

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