Greenfield Public Safety Commission reviews third-alarm brush fire that crossed Interstate 91

Other Committee · Meeting of April 22, 2026

Greenfield's Public Safety Commission heard accounts of a third-alarm, 14-acre brush fire that crossed Interstate 91 and drew more than 100 firefighters from three states on April 14. Fire Chief Todd Dodge, appearing online, said the fire threatened a nursing home on Laurel Street and a self-storage facility and was contained within two hours, calling it unlike anything he had seen "in a populated area like that." Deputy Fire Chief Peter McIver said the department received 24 mutual-aid responses in April, 20 of them for that single event; partner agency Shelburne Control Dispatch answered 102 overflow 911 calls during the fire. The dispatch supervisor reported that in a separate April 15 incident on Federal Street, dispatchers coordinated a stabbing response — including Life Flight, the special response team, and state police — with the first officer on scene within one minute of the call.

Mayor Roxann Wedegartner told the commission the city council approved a new emergency generator for the police station and dispatch center at an emergency meeting April 21, replacing a temporary rental that had been running at up to $20,000 a month.

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Source: the Other Committee meeting of April 22, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.