Brockton Hospital fire; Easton police shooting: Top 5 stories in Brockton area last week

BROCKTON − More than 160 patients were evacuated at Signature Healthcare Brockton Hospital after a transformer fire broke out in the basement of a building on the campus early Tuesday morning. The 10-alarm fire began just before 8 a.m. at the hospital, at 680 Centre St. The Brockton Fire Department said the 10-alarm fire response brought in 77 ambulances, six wheelchair vans, 31 fire engines and seven ladder trucks.

An Easton police officer fired a single fatal gunshot at a 56-year-old woman who threatened to shoot herself and officers and who later pointed a rifle-style BB gun at police, Bristol County District Attorney Thomas Quinn said Monday.

Seven adults and two children were displaced after an early morning fire caused "extensive" damage to a multi-family home on North Main Street in Brockton, Fire Chief Brian Nardelli said.

Fourteen different local high school players that play for the East Coast Eagles signed national letters of intent to play college baseball.

In case you missed it, here are five of the top stories from the past week throughout the Brockton area.

160 patients transferred from Brockton Hospital after 10-alarm transformer fire

Seventy-plus ambulances. Hundreds of firefighters and paramedics. Mutual aid from as far north as Brookline and as far south as Cape Cod. A closed hospital with zero electricity in a city of more than 100,000 residents. That was the scene that unfolded throughout the day Tuesday at Signature Healthcare Brockton Hospital. A transformer fire that broke out shortly before 8 a.m. in the basement of the hospital drew the largest response in the near-200-year history of the Brockton Fire Department. The Brockton Fire Department said the 10-alarm fire response brought in 77 ambulances, six wheelchair vans, 31 fire engines and seven ladder trucks.

160 patients transferred:160 patients transferred from Brockton Hospital after 10-alarm transformer fire

Photos of evacuation:Hundred-plus patients evacuated from Brockton Hospital after 10-alarm transformer fire

Nurse describes harrowing scene:Nurse describes harrowing scene inside Brockton Hospital evacuating patients without power

DA: Easton police officer shoots, kills woman holding rifle-style BB gun

An Easton police officer fired a single fatal gunshot at a 56-year-old woman who threatened to shoot herself and officers and who later pointed a rifle-style BB gun at police, Bristol County District Attorney Thomas Quinn said Monday. The Southeastern Regional Emergency Communications Center received a 911 call about 11:30 a.m. on Feb. 5 from an Ashland resident who requested a well-being check be conducted for his mother. "The caller stated that his mother, Marianne Griffiths, 56, had told him that she had injected herself with a dangerous amount of insulin in an attempt to commit suicide," Quinn said in a written statement Monday.

More:DA: Easton police officer shoots, kills woman holding rifle-style BB gun

Brockton attorney for Duxbury's Lindsay Clancy has long list of high-profile clients

From the girlfriend of mobster James “Whitey” Bulger to Boston Red Sox slugger Mo Vaughn, the lawyer hired to represent the Duxbury mother charged in the deaths of her three children has a long list of high-profile clients spanning several decades. Brockton-based attorney Kevin Reddington, called the “the affable Reddington” by Boston Magazine, was named by the publication in 2002 as the best criminal defense attorney in the state. Reddington is representing Duxbury mother Lindsay Clancy, who he said was overmedicated when she killed her three children on Jan. 24.

Reddington's high-profile clients:Brockton attorney for Duxbury's Lindsay Clancy has long list of high-profile clients

'She killed the kids':'She killed the kids': Court hearing reveals what happened to Clancy children in Duxbury

Reddington defends Bulger girlfriend:Lawyer Kevin Reddington takes on another high-profile case in defending 'Whitey' Bulger girlfriend

Fire engulfs Abington home leaving two displaced

Fire engulfed a single-family home in Abington leaving two people displaced, according to a written statement from the Abington firefighters union. Crews arrived on the scene after 3 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 5, and saw smoke and fire coming from the chimney. The smoke detectors in the home at 306 Washington St. alerted the two adult occupants, and they were able to safely and quickly evacuate without injury, the statement said.

2 displaced by Abington fire:Fire engulfs Abington home leaving two displaced

Photos of firefighters battling fire:Firefighters battle 2-alarm house fire in Abington

Brockton educator whose own brother was murdered: 'Seeking help is OK'

Sean Paige is an educator with a message. The 29-year-old had a "rough upbringing" in Bessemer, Alabama, where he was raised by his mother and grandmother, while spending his summers with his aunt Tammi Offley in Brockton to "escape the bad influences on every corner," he said. In 2018, his younger brother, Tonone Lowe, was shot and killed in Atlanta, Georgia, which is what influenced Paige to become a mentor for young people with hard childhoods. "I had always dreamed of being a mentor or a teacher," he said.

'Seeking help is OK':Brockton educator whose own brother was murdered: 'Seeking help is OK'

Staff writer Kathy Bossa can be reached by email at kbossa@enterprisenews.com. Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to The Enterprise today. 

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