State Fire Marshal: Daylight Saving Time Reminder

STOW, Mass. —With daylight saving time beginning on March 9, Massachusetts fire officials are reminding residents to check their smoke and carbon monoxide (CO) alarms when they change their clocks.

"Working smoke and CO alarms are your family's first line of defense against an emergency at home," said State Fire Marshal Jon M. Davine. "As we spring forward this weekend, remember to check your alarms when you change your clocks. Be sure they're present on every level of your home and within their useful lifespan. And unless you have newer alarms with sealed, long-life batteries, this is a great time to replace the alkaline batteries in all your alarms."

"Smoke and CO alarms are like any other appliance – they don't last forever," said Foxborough Fire Chief Michael Kelleher, president of the Fire Chiefs Association of Massachusetts. "An alarm's manufacturing date is printed on the back of the device. Smoke alarms need to be replaced after 10 years, and carbon monoxide alarms need to be replaced after 5, 7, or 10 years, depending on the make and model. If your alarm is out of date, or if there's no date at all, it's time to replace it."

Most Fire Deaths Take Place at Home Overnight

Of the 50 fire deaths in Massachusetts last year, 80 percent took place in dwellings – and more than half of these took place between 8:00 pm and 7:00 am. Overall, DFS code compliance officers could only confirm that smoke alarms were present and operated at about 35 percent of the fatal fire scenes they inspected.

"Here in Massachusetts, most fire deaths take place at home and they're most common during the overnight hours when we're sleeping," State Fire Marshal Davine said. "Tragically, we see this fact pattern play out again and again, especially with seniors in homes without working smoke alarms."

Older Adults at Greatest Risk

More than half of last year's residential fire deaths involved adults aged 65 and older. State Fire Marshal Davine and Chief Kelleher asked residents to check in on older relatives, friends, and neighbors who may need help installing, testing, or replacing their alarms. Seniors can also contact their local fire department, council on aging, or senior center for assistance: Department of Fire Services' Senior SAFE grant program awarded nearly half a million dollars to fire departments across Massachusetts last year to support assistance with alarm installation and testing.

Replacing an out-of-date alarm?

The Massachusetts Comprehensive Fire Safety Code requires replacement battery-operated smoke alarms in older one- and two-family homes to have sealed, long-life batteries and a hush feature. These alarms are easier to maintain and less likely to be disabled while cooking or by someone using the batteries for other household appliances.

"Disabling a smoke alarm puts you and everyone in your building at risk," said Chief Kelleher. "Never remove the batteries from a smoke alarm until it's time to replace the batteries or the alarm itself."

Fire officials recommend that you choose alarms from a well-known, national brand. Look for the mark of an independent testing laboratory such as UL or Intertek. Many Massachusetts fire departments have found alarms purchased through Amazon and other online retailers that do not meet the Fire Code – and may not perform when they're needed most.

"If the price seems too good to be true, then it probably is," said State Fire Marshal Davine.

Carbon Monoxide Hazards

Heating equipment is the leading source of carbon monoxide at home, Chief Kelleher said, and CO remains a hazard even in warmer weather. While many carbon monoxide incidents involve furnaces and other heating appliances, CO is also produced by stoves, grills, and vehicles, as well as generators put into use during a power outage.

"Massachusetts firefighters report detecting carbon monoxide at about 5,000 calls each year," said Chief Kelleher. "We can't see, smell, or taste this silent, invisible killer. Working CO alarms are the only way to detect it. Please be sure you have them in place at home. If you hear them sounding, get out to fresh air right away and call 9-1-1 for help."

Toys for Tots Bringing Presents to Thousands of Kids This Year

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
12:21PM / Friday, December 05, 2025

Volunteers organize toys by age and gender in the House of Corrections storage facility. 

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Plenty of toys are on their way to children this holiday season thanks to Toys for Tots.

Christopher Keegan has coordinated the local toy drive for the Berkshire Chapter of the Marine Corps Reserve since 2015 and said he has seen the need rise every year, last year helping more than 6,000 kids.

"This is 11 years I've been doing it, and the need has gone up every year. It's gone up every year, and I anticipate it going up even more this year," Keegan said.

On Thursday, the Berkshire County House of Corrections storage facility was overflowing with toys making it the county's very own Santa's workshop. 

Keegan said Berkshire County always shows up with toys or donations. 

"This county is outstanding when it comes to charity. They rally around stuff. They're very giving, they're very generous, and they've been tremendous in this effort, the toys for pride effort, since I've been doing it, our goal is to honor every request, and we've always reached that goal," he said.

Keegan's team is about 20 to 25 volunteers who sort out toys based on age and gender. This week, the crew started collecting from the 230 or so boxes set out around the county on Oct. 1.

"The two age groups that are probably more difficult — there's a newborn to 2s, boys and girls, and 11 to 14, boys and girls. Those are the two challenging ages where we need to focus our attention on a little bit more," he said.

Toys For Tots has about 30 participating schools and agencies that sign up families and individuals who need help putting gifts under the tree. Keegan takes requests right up until the last minute on Christmas.

"We can go out shopping for Christmas. I had sent my daughter out Christmas Eve morning. Hey, we need X amount of toys and stuff, but the requests are still rolling in from individuals, and I don't say no, we'll make it work however we can," he said.

Community members help to raise money or bring in unopened and unused toys. Capeless Elementary student Thomas St. John recently raised $1,000 selling hot chocolate and used the money to buy toys for the drive.

"It's amazing how much it's grown and how broad it is, how many people who were involved," Keegan said.

On Saturday, Live 95.9 personalities Bryan Slater and Marjo Catalano of "Slater and Marjo in the Morning" will host a Toys for Tots challenge at The Hot Dog Ranch and Proprietor's Lodge. Keegan said they have been very supportive of the drive and that they were able to collect more than 3,000 toys for the drive last year.

Volunteer Debbie Melle has been volunteering with Toys for Tots in the county for about five years and said people really showed up to give this year.

"I absolutely love it. It's what we always say. It's organized chaos, but it's rewarding. And what I actually this year, I'm so surprised, because the amount that the community has given us, and you can see that when you see these pictures, that you've taken, this is probably the most toys we've ever gotten," she said. "So I don't know if people just feel like this is a time to give and they're just going above and beyond, but I'm blown away. This year we can barely walk down the aisles for how much, how many toys are here. It's wonderful."