Police respond to motor vehicle crash involving school bus
Great Barrington — Chief of Police William Walsh Jr. reports that the Great Barrington Police Department is investigating a motor vehicle crash involving a school bus that occurred Friday morning, February 12.
At approximately 7:30 a.m., police, the Great Barrington Fire Department, and the Southern Berkshire Volunteer Ambulance Squad responded to a motor vehicle crash on Park Street in Housatonic near Cone Avenue. A 2001 Ford Escort had been traveling north on Park Street when the driver lost control of the vehicle and crashed into an occupied school bus traveling south in the opposite lane. There were no serious injuries to occupants of either vehicle, but the driver of the Ford, a 17-year-old female, was transported by ambulance to Berkshire Medical Center.
Berkshire Hills Regional School District Superintendent Peter Dillon and Principal Marianne Young of Monument Mountain Regional High School arrived on the scene to assist with releasing students to parents and/or boarding them onto a new bus for transport to school. A total of 27 students ages 12-18 were on the bus at the time. Parents were notified immediately by school officials.
“Fortunately no one was seriously injured as a result of this crash,” Chief Walsh said. “Thanks to the quick response of police, fire, and EMS and the assistance from school personnel, operations on scene ran smoothly and we were able to get all students safely to school.”
The school bus sustained moderate damage and was driven from the scene by the operator after students were off-loaded. The crash is under investigation by Great Barrington Police Officer Adam Carlotto.
–E.E.
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Egremont fire, rescue teams expand emergency response
Egremont — The Egremont Fire Department has announced that the town’s firefighters and first responders will now be able to administer naloxone (Narcan) and epi-pens.
The new service is the result of discussions that were initiated in 2015 between the Egremont Fire Department and Fairview Hospital. This agreement between the hospital and a first responder agency is the first of its kind in the southern Berkshires. The two organizations have signed a formal agreement following an extensive process of preparation including training, obtaining MCSR licensure from the state, installing security lock boxes, and developing policies and procedures with Fairview Hospital’s Pharmacy Department. Dr. Alec Belman, Chief of Emergency Medicine at Fairview Hospital, will oversee the program.
Dr. Belman said, “The agreement and oversight into this program is similar to our oversight with Southern Berkshire Ambulance Service. The first responders with Egremont Fire are all trained in proper use of these medications. We will evaluate the appropriate use each time the medications are administered and provide feedback to the agency to help them develop. The Egremont Fire Department is to be applauded by their community for the efforts of their membership to make this additional service possible. They have been working on this for months and it has not been easy to jump through all the state regulatory hoops that an endeavor like this requires.”
The Emergency Medical System is designed to provide rapid response with increased levels of care for all medical emergencies, which begins with a call to 911, followed by the dispatch of first responders and an ambulance crew. First responders are often members of the local fire department and are usually the first to arrive since an ambulance comes from out of town. In the past responders would begin an examination and administer first aid, but any drugs needed by a patient had to wait for the arrival of an ambulance.
–E.E.
