Between Dec. 8 and Jan. 4 the Harvard Fire Department extinguished a smoldering fire in a home and responded to three car fires on Route 2. Lt. Andrew Perry conducted 19 inspections.
Saturday, Dec. 8
Ten firefighters and one recruit responded at 2:19 p.m. to a vehicle fire on Route 2 westbound between Ayer and Jackson roads. The vehicle’s brakes were on fire. The firefighters extinguished the fire and waited until the car was towed.
Friday, Dec. 14
Poor Farm Road residents reported a strange odor in their house at 9:22 a.m. Five firefighters checked the home with the gas meter and the thermal imaging camera but found nothing. At 7:09 p.m. a car crash brought five firefighters to Littleton Road. The ambulance took one person to the hospital. The firefighters cleaned up fluids and waited for the car to be towed.
Sunday, Dec. 16
At 11:59 a.m. Deputy Chief Charlie Nigzus assisted a homeowner with a carbon monoxide detector. Nigzus checked the house, and ultimately found an expired detector. He advised the homeowner to replace it. At 1:58 p.m. seven firefighters and one recruit responded to an automatic fire alarm at a Still River Depot Road home. The homeowners were home at the time and confirmed the alarm was triggered by accident. And at 6:12 p.m. nine firefighters responded to a car fully-engulfed in flame on Route 2 westbound west of Harvard. The firefighters extinguished the fire, provided scene safety, checked that the fire was out with the thermal imaging camera, and waited until the car was towed. They returned to the station at 8:15 p.m.
Wednesday, Dec. 19
Eight firefighters trained with the new tanker from 7 to 11:30 p.m.
Friday, Dec. 21
At 12:39 p.m. the department went to Littleton County Road to check on a report of downed wires and a tree on fire. The five firefighters found a tree had taken down wires, but there was no fire. National Grid was notified.
Tuesday, Dec. 25
Christmas evening at 9:41 p.m. the Wickmans of Willow Road called to report the smell of something burning in their home. Twelve firefighters and Chief Rick Sicard responded. The firefighters could smell smoke and upgraded the call to a “working fire,” which brought in mutual aid from Bolton, Boxborough, and Lancaster. The firefighters ultimately found smoldering wood in the wall behind the fireplace and under the adjacent floor. The firefighters lifted floorboards and put out the fire using hand-held water extinguishers. Homeowner Darrell Wickman said, “We are extremely appreciative. And the insurance inspector was blown away by the minimal damage that Harvard’s Fire Department was forced to do during the fire investigation.” The family is able to stay in the home; the cause of the fire is still under investigation. The firefighters were back at the station at 2:40 a.m.
Friday, Dec. 28
Seven firefighters and one recruit responded to an automatic alarm at a Littleton County Road home at 5:11 p.m. The firefighters confirmed the alarm was triggered by cooking and no assistance was needed.
Saturday, Dec. 29
Lt. Bill Barton assisted Littleton Road residents with a sounding detector at 2:37 a.m. He checked the house, found a faulty detector, cleaned it, and reset the system. This was the department’s 364th and final call of 2018.
Wednesday, Jan. 2
At 9:05 a.m. five firefighters and one recruit responded to a two-car accident on Ayer Road. The Ayer ambulance took one driver to the hospital. One car was towed and one drove from the scene. At 2:35 p.m. four firefighters, Chief Sicard, and one recruit responded to a car fire on Route 2 westbound. The department had to close the highway for almost an hour until the fire was completely extinguished. The firefighters helped clean up the roadway and waited for the vehicle to be towed
Fire Department Factoid
Smokey the Bear (part of the fire danger level sign on Ayer Road) is not lost. Having come unglued, he’s spending a few months in the fire station waiting for warmer weather.
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