Lithium-Ion Battery Fire Training for Public Safety Officials

05:56PM / Thursday, July 17, 2025Print Story | Email Story

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Fire, police, and emergency medical professionals in Berkshire County are invited to a hands-on training on lithium-ion battery fire response hosted by the Berkshire Regional Transit Authority.

The workshop, led by a lithium-ion battery expert with International BAE Systems, covers how to recognize battery failures, prevent thermal runaway, and protect crews from toxic gas exposure and reignition hazards. This training follows a serious fire event at the Pioneer Valley Transit Authority where a battery pack repeatedly ignited for hours and had to be removed from the bus.

This session is recommended if your department responds to fires involving electric vehicles, scooters, or stored battery packs.

The training will be held on Wednesday, July 30, from 10 to 4 at BRTA's maintenance facility at 67 Downing Parkway.

The cost is free for public safety personnel but attendees are asked to register at 413-499-2782, Ext. 2892, accem.scott@berkshirerta.gov or justin.rowland@berkshirerta.gov. Registration is also being taken here.

Tags: fire safety,

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Berkshire Museum Explores Ancient Egypt With ‘Soulful Creatures’

By Sabrina DammsiBerkshires Staff
11:33AM / Friday, October 09, 2026

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Following its multimillion-dollar renovation, the Berkshire Museum is welcoming an exhibition unlike any it has been able to host before.

Marking the museum's first major exhibition since its renovation, "Soulful Creatures: Animal Mummies in Ancient Egypt," opening Saturday, Oct. 10, thins the veil between the ever-evolving history of Egyptian culture and society and modern day people.

"The most important thing about history is recognizing people from the past as actual people. Ancient Egyptians are no different than us," said William Dore, the museum's chief curator. "They have different cultures and beliefs and different viewpoints, but you can say the same thing about people today."

When audiences experience the exhibit, they will see the humanity in the people of the past, which in turn helps them connect with different views and perspectives around the world today, he said.

Combining archeology with modern scientific imaging, Brooklyn (N.Y.) Museum curators Yekaterina Barbash and Edward Bleiberg designed an exhibit that works to uncover the mysteries behind these objects and the beliefs and rituals that surround them.

"I think something that people kind of misunderstand about history is none of it's ever settled. ... History is a science that is constantly questioned,” Dore said. "It only works if everyone's constantly rethinking things, learning new things ... which is for me super exciting because as much as we know a lot about the ancient Egyptians, there's a lot we don't know.”

The installation features dozens of artifacts on loan from the Brooklyn Museum that explores the practice of animal mummification and the role animals played in ancient Egyptian religion.

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