An Ayer firefighter soaks the ground and fallen trees to put out the March 26 brush fire. (Photos by Lisa Aciukewicz)
A firetruck sits trapped in the driveway by a live electrical line after a fallen tree caused a pole to snap.
A tree blocks the driveway of the home where the fire broke out. High winds blew it down when the firefighters were at work.
A brush fire rekindled by high winds on Prospect Hill Road Monday brought responders from sixsurrounding communities to help the Harvard Fire Department put it out.
According to a Harvard Police report, firefighters had responded to a small unrelated mulch fire near the intersection of Still River Road and Willard Lane when they noticed smoke coming from the Prospect Hill area around 4 p.m. Monday. Fire Chief Rick Sicard told the Press that homeowners there had burnt and put out a permitted brush fire Saturday, but the strong wind got it going again Monday. The fire did not reach any buildings. It covered about three acres of forest, Sicard said.
Firefighters from Ayer, Boxborough, Bolton, Devens, and Lancaster responded to help with the fire, while Littleton provided backup at the station in case any other calls came in, Sicard said. The fire took several hours to fully extinguish, the police report says.
Making things more complicated for firefighters Monday, the high winds knocked down a tree at the end of the home’s driveway, bringing power lines down on a Boxborough fire truck that was parked there, trapping a firefighter inside the truck until the power could be turned off, Sicard said.
National Grid workers responded, killed the power, and removed the wires, Sicard said.
