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Helicopters dump water on Massachusetts brush fires, smoke seen for miles

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Helicopters dump water on Massachusetts brush fires, smoke seen for miles


MIDDLETON – Brush fire smoke could be seen for miles as it gripped the Middleton community. Firefighters said it could take days to fight the fire and for the smoke to clear out.

From the air as the sun set, smoldering smoke rose above the woodlands of Middleton. The fight against flames and thick smoke continued with buckets of water being dumped by helicopters over a brush fire burning in its second day.

“It’s never been this dry in my whole life that I’ve seen, I’m surprised they had enough water to fight it with,” said Wayne Farrin whose mother lives in Middleton.

50-acre brush fire in Middleton

The flames started near powerlines by Upton Hills Road, then soon spread to a 50-acre brush fire leaving overwhelming thick smoke hanging over the neighborhood.

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Helicopter wildfire Massachusetts
A helicopter dumps a bucket of water on a brush fire in Middleton, Massachusetts. 

CBS Boston


“It is scary because it’s so dry it can spread fast,” said Jay Weaver who lives in the neighborhood.

Firefighters ran several water lines through the tricky terrain. With dry weather and dry ground, it’s the perfect recipe for brush fires.

“The leaves, the dead branches, that stuff happens you know but I have faith in the fire department and stuff like that, they’re doing their job,” said Weaver.

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More than 100 acres burned in Salem  

In Salem, crews worked to protect neighborhoods as a brush fire spread through the woods behind homes. Already more than 100 acres have burned.

In the tough conditions, the task hasn’t been easy for Salem firefighters who worked hard to snuff out smoldering hot spots with every tool they had.

“We’re making sure it doesn’t get to close,” said Deputy Fire Chief Peter Schaeublin.

18 brush fires in last 24 hours

With 18 active brush fires reported across the state in the past 24 hours, people as far south as Boston could smell it. Neighbors in the thick of it know if the wind changes, anything can change.

“Hopefully they can get it contained and no one’s house will get burned and families lose their houses you know it would be sad if something like that happened,” said Farrin.

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When it got dark Monday night, firefighters left the area where brush fires were burning for their safety, but they’ll go back out if a neighbor calls. The fight continues first thing Tuesday morning.

State fire marshal urges caution

The state fire marshal’s office urged Massachusetts residents to use extra caution with any open flame or other heat source outdoors.

“The dry, sunny, breezy weather is great for recreation, but it also means that any outdoor fire will spread quickly and become very difficult to manage,” said State Fire Marshal Jon M. Davine. “We’re seeing preventable fires growing to dangerous sizes and drawing numerous resources, locally and regionally.”

The fire marshal said open burning is prohibited statewide through January and in many communities year-round. Officials urged residents to refrain from outdoor cooking and heating, and to use caution with lawnmowers, leaf blowers and other power equipment.  

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Massachusetts

Swimmer pulled from Houghton’s Pond after search

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Swimmer pulled from Houghton’s Pond after search


A teenager was pulled from a pond in Milton, Massachusetts, after he went missing while swimming Saturday night.

The Norfolk County District Attorney’s Office said the teenaged male was taken to a Boston area hospital following the incident at Houghton’s Pond. It’s unclear how long the teen was under water, and there was no immediate word on his condition.

State police had said earlier that they responded to the pond shortly after 7 p.m. for a person who entered the water and didn’t resurface. State police divers, detectives, troopers, and the Milton Fire Department were all on scene involved in the search.

The DA’s office is conducting an investigation with state police that remains ongoing. Further information is not being released at this time.

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This story will be updated when we learn more



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Mass. man charged with posing as teen, exposing himself to 12-, 13-year-old girls

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Mass. man charged with posing as teen, exposing himself to 12-, 13-year-old girls


A Massachusetts man is facing multiple charges for allegedly engaging in inappropriate communications and exposing himself to children.

Orate Kyle Graham, 20, of Bridgewater, was arrested this week on two counts of disseminating obscene material to a minor and one count of accosting or annoying another person.

Bridgewater police said they were made aware Tuesday of allegations involving interactions between several girls age 12 and 13 and an individual known to them only as “Jay.” The individual said he was 17 years old during conversations with the girls through FaceTime and in person.

Through an investigation, police identified “Jay” as Graham, and also found that he had regularly engaged in interactions with the minor victims. During those interactions, he allegedly exposed himself and asked the girls to expose themselves to him.

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He was arrested Thursday and taken to the Plymouth County House of Correction, where he was held on $25,000 bail. The case remains under investigation by Bridgewater police and the Plymouth District Attorney’s Office.



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Fisherman reels in white shark off Massachusetts, then snags the hook from its toothy mouth

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Fisherman reels in white shark off Massachusetts, then snags the hook from its toothy mouth


BILLERICA, Mass. (AP) — Elliot Sudal didn’t need a bigger boat, but he did need to find a way to get a hook out of a shark’s mouth.

Sudal, a veteran angler and boat captain, reeled in the nearly nine-foot shark — also commonly known as a great white shark or a great white — on June 7 on Nantucket. White sharks are a protected species in the U.S. and must be released immediately when accidentally caught.

That presents a nasty problem for a fisherman because the white shark is a formidable apex predator best known for the 1975 movie Jaws, in which Roy Scheider utters the famous line “You’re gonna need a bigger boat” upon seeing the big fish. Sudal, who caught the shark while fishing from shore, decided to use his encounter to demonstrate how to respond to such a situation.

Sudal posted a video of himself removing the hook to his social media accounts. In the video, Sudal climbs onto the back of the shark, secures the fish in the surf, and removes the hook from its mouth. By the end of the short video, the shark is back in the water.

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White sharks typically have about 300 teeth arranged into five rows, so speed was key.

“Hooks out and back on her way in 15 seconds, not sure how to do it better,” Sudal wrote in an Instagram post that included a video of the shark release.

Sudal is no stranger to sharks, and has caught and tagged hundreds of them over the years. He said in a social media post that this month’s encounter with a white shark was the first time he has ever caught one of them in more than a decade of the work.

Sudal’s practices have sometimes attracted the attention of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association, such as in 2017, when the agency investigated his handling of a smalltooth sawfish, an endangered species, in Florida. The agency said in 2018 that it sent Sudal a letter “informing him of the Endangered Species Act issues and the safe handling protocol for sawfish.”

White sharks are not listed under the federal Endangered Species Act, but are subject to special federal protections. The International Union for Conservation of Nature considers them vulnerable globally.

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Sightings of white sharks off New England have ticked up in recent years, and some scientists have pinned that to the greater availability of the seals that they prey on. Dangerous encounters between white sharks and humans are extremely rare, and only a few dozen fatal white shark bites on people have ever been recorded.

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Whittle reported from Portland, Maine.

Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.





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