New Fire Chief Rick Sicard holds up an automated external defibrillator (AED). He hopes to equip all town fire engines with them. (Photo by Lisa Aciukewicz)

Becoming a full-time fire chief has been a longtime goal of Richard Sicard, who assumed the post in Harvard in June after 22 years on call, first with the Lancaster Fire Department and most recently in Ashburnham.

"I've always loved the fire industry," Sicard said to the Press this week, reflecting on his first months on the job. "I've always worked hard to get to this position."

Previously self-employed as a carpenter, Sicard said he is "a lot more comfortable" now that he is able to focus full-time on firefighting. A married father of three, Sicard grew up in Lancaster and now lives in Ashburnham.

Sicard was chosen by Selectmen in May from among three finalists. He had been one of three lieutenants in the Ashburnham Fire Department, where he was also president of the town's Firefighters Association. In Harvard he replaced interim Chief Donald Hurme, who was filling in since the town declined to renew the contract of Chief Bob Mignard at the end of 2010.

Sicard's biggest challenge since he took over has been getting a handle on the department's paperwork, he said. His nicest surprise: "the quality of personnel on the fire department."

"Every department's different, but I was very impressed with the professionalism, level of training, and dedication of the staff that was here," he said.

Training is something that Sicard takes very seriously. You can't get enough of it, he said. It's especially important for a department that has a relatively low volume of calls, he said.

"When you have fewer calls, you have to train more," Sicard said. "Not only training in the department, but going elsewhere and training outside the department."

Sicard said he's in a number of professional organizations, like the Fire Chiefs Association of Massachusetts, that offer training to their members to help them keep up with new techniques and new equipment.

"I can't stress that upon the membership enough: get as much training as you can," Sicard said.

There have been no large fires so far under Sicard's watch, but, he said, he's been "very well pleased" with the performance of the personnel on the calls he's been on. He observed a live fire training session before he was hired and the department's firefighters came off as "professional, very well trained," Sicard said.

Equipment-wise, one of the strengths of the Harvard Fire Department is the trucks, Sicard, said; they're all new. New truck purchases have been postponed in other area fire departments as towns struggle with tight budgets, he said.

Otherwise, while "at this point I still haven't evaluated all the equipment that we have to determine what we need," Sicard said, he already knows he would like to get automated external defibrillators (AEDs) for each truck. He showed one of the AEDs to the Harvard Press. It is easy to use and fits inside a small carrying-case.

His number one priority as a fire chief, though, Sicard said is fire prevention. Department personnel already go on regular classroom visits to educate students on fire safety and the role of the fire department. Sicard said he will continue this practice.

"I like what I've seen so far," he said. "It's still in the evaluation mode of everything we do."

Fire Prevention Month is coming up in October, Sicard said.

Sicard said he's available at the station or by phone for anyone in Harvard who has questions about fire prevention and other safety issues.

"I've already gone out to several houses and helped them with where to put the smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detectors—there's no charge for that," he said. "I'd rather see them do it right than do it wrong."

And no one should hesitate to call 911 at the first sight of a fire, Sicard said, even if it's small or turns out to be nothing; it's what he's there for.

"My biggest thing, with the public in the past, is they're afraid to call," he said, "and it doesn't cost them anything."