John Pliakas News Today

As Hurricane Lee headed toward New England, officials in Cumberland and Lincoln were still assessing the damage from rain and wind storms earlier in the week and hoping the worst

CUMBERLAND – A deputy rescue chief has been told to stop conducting private EMT classes on town property without proper permissions.

CUMBERLAND – John Pliakas is on leave as chief of Cumberland EMS and the department is now under internal review, The Valley Breeze learned this week.

CUMBERLAND – A combined $440,000 worth of upgrades to Cumberland’s radio systems will eliminate current “dead spots” in town where communication in or out is impossible, addressing a serious safety

CUMBERLAND – The Amaral Building on Mill Street is that “little building that could,” say town representatives, the last remaining building here from the photos of a century ago, even

CUMBERLAND – The shooting death of a couple in a neighborhood near the Arnold Mills Reservoir last week shattered a family and left neighbors and friends devastated.

CUMBERLAND – Chief of Police Matthew Benson reports that the Cumberland Police Department, after positive identification and notification of next of kin, has released the names of the two adults

3/31/2021 Cumberland’s dive team is better equipped Firefighter John Rei asks a question about a piece of equipment while training with new scuba gear at the Boys & Girls Club of Cumberland-Lincoln last Wednesday morning. (Breeze photos by Robert Emerson) CUMBERLAND – Few places make someone feel more alone than descending into the abyss of a dark river and feeling around for something. Members of the Cumberland Water Rescue and Recovery Team, now training new members and boasting new equip...

2/10/2021 Mutter on vaccine: Most 75-year-olds shouldn’t have to wait more than a month Cumberland EMS personnel Steve Parent, left, and Jay Gomes prepare vaccines in the hallway of Cumberland Manor on Mendon Road on Feb. 4, part of the town’s door-to-door vaccination program at senior housing complexes. Town completes door-to-door vaccinations in senior housing CUMBERLAND – Aurise Carden said she was excited to read last Thursday about Cumberland’s plan to get older residents vaccinate...

2/3/2021 Cumberland rolls out town-based vaccine effort Jonathan Polak, deputy chief of the Smithfield Emergency Medical Services, hands out assignments to John Pliakas, chief of the Cumberland EMS, during a COVID-19 vaccination clinic for ages 75 and older at Smithfield High School last Saturday. (Breeze photo by Charles Lawrence) CUMBERLAND – Cumberland Emergency Services personnel are uniquely equipped to administer the COVID-19 vaccine independently, so the town is undertaking its own eff...