Updated 6 a.m., June 5, 2022
Harvard’s Select Board has voted to allow the Harvard Fire Department to surplus their damaged 2005 Pierce pumper engine, otherwise known as old Engine 2. The decision, made at the board’s May 17 meeting, was unanimous.
According to a memo from Fire Chief Rick Sicard, a 40-inch crack was discovered in the engine’s frame rail in 2014.
“It has been 8 years since this has happened and we feel it is time to move on and divest the town of the vehicle,” Sicard’s memo said.
Assistant Town Administrator Marie Sobalvarro, speaking on behalf of the fire chief at the meeting, said the engine will likely be auctioned off on the website govdeals.com, a platform “specifically created for, and dedicated to, government and educational agencies and their surplus disposition,” according to the site’s “About Us” page.
Designating the damaged fire engine as surplus will generate revenue from its sale and remove the vehicle from the town’s insurance.
Editor's note: This story was updated to reflect that the engine was not repaired under a lifetime warranty for cracks in the frame because the town and the manufacturer disagreed as to whether the crack was covered by the warranty.
