Between Sept. 30 and Oct. 13, the Harvard Fire Department responded to one car crash, one cooking fire, and one automatic house alarm. Chief Rick Sicard conducted four smoke/carbon monoxide alarm inspections and six liquid propane inspections.
Saturday, Sept. 30
Eight firefighters responded to a cooking fire at an Old Mill Road residence at 6 p.m. The fire was already extinguished when the firefighters arrived, and the homeowners had already ventilated the home. The fire crew checked the house and returned to the station by 6:45 p.m.
Wednesday, Oct. 4
At their Wednesday night meeting, firefighters practiced with the Rapid Intervention Team (RIT) breathing equipment. At each fire, a subset of firefighters is designated as the RIT; their job is to rescue any firefighter who needs help. The firefighters practiced attaching the RIT air supply to a firefighter’s standard breathing equipment.
Wednesday, Oct. 11
At the Wednesday night meeting, an instructor from the Massachusetts Firefighting Academy spoke to Harvard firefighters about responding to a major railroad derailment.
Thursday, Oct. 12
At 12:17 p.m. six firefighters and Chief Rick Sicard responded to a single-car crash on Still River Road. The car came to rest on its side, with the driver-side door down, trapping the driver. After securing the car with special metal bars and chock blocks, the Fire Department cut out the windshield and the steering wheel. An EMT from the Harvard ambulance assessed the single occupant and stabilized the patient with a neck brace. Members of both the fire and ambulance crews extracted the driver on a backboard; the ambulance took him to the hospital. The car was towed.
Friday, Oct. 13
At 11:30 p.m. an automatic alarm triggered at an East Bare Hill Road residence. Lt. Tony Shaw, the officer on call, responded. He reset the alarm, which resumed normal operation; no further assistance was required.
FIRE DEPARTMENT FACTOID
Lt. Andrew Perry has been hired as a full-time firefighter and EMT. He will work on both the Fire Department and ambulance crew. This is the first full-time firefighter position in Harvard. He started Oct. 16.
The Fire Department Log is written every other week by a Harvard Press reporter based on information gleaned from daily logs and interviews with a department firefighter.
