Members of the Department of Public Works and the Fire Department form a bucket brigade as they pass sandbags to shore up the dam on Bare Hill Pond on March 30 after more rain fell during the wettest March on record. (Photos by Lisa Aciukewicz)

National Guard troops were called to Harvard Tuesday night to assist local emergency response teams in sandbagging the dam at Bare Hill Pond after torrential rains from the second nor’easter in two weeks brought the pond’s water level to within 2 inches of the bottom of the dam’s spillway.

The dam, located at the end of Willow Road, helps local officials manage the water level in the pond. Outflow from the dam pours into Bowers Brook and the surrounding marsh, which borders Still River Road.

Forecasts of three days of rain prompted Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick to declare a state of emergency Monday, mobilizing more than 1,000 National Guardsmen to stand ready to assist. President Obama issued a disaster declaration for seven Massachusetts counties, including Worcester and Middlesex. Harvard Fire Chief Bob Mignard told the Press that all eyes were on the dam after the rains arrived on Monday.

Firefighter Greg Harrod (center) gives the stop signal to a DPW loader operator delivering a pallet of sandbags to the dam on Bare Hill Pond.

The water churns through the swamp outfall beneath Under Pin Hill Road, normally a far more serene scene.

“If the dam went, it would cost millions of dollars and would take years to fix,” Mignard said.

On Monday, Mignard said, the water level in the pond had been about 8 inches below the dam’s spillway opening, and by Tuesday morning it had risen 3 more inches.

Tuesday, as ponds and streams began to spring up in Harvard yards and fields, and concern over the stability of the dam mounted, the Board of Selectmen declared a local state of emergency. According to Town Administrator Tim Bragan, such a declaration allows spending outside the normal process to address any costs incurred in responding to an emergency. As of press time, Harvard’s costs had not been determined.

Mignard said that he and Department of Public Works Director Rich Nota had made the decision to start sandbagging the dam around midday Tuesday, after the water level in the pond had risen to within 2 inches of entrance to the spillway, and decided to call in the National Guard. About 30 troops arrived Tuesday evening, he said, bringing with them three trucks of sandbags. Guardsmen worked alongside firefighters and DPW workers until midnight, laying 2,500 sandbags along the dam.

From left: Willow Road residents Nicole Chapman, John Chapman, and Patty Ruze play good Samaritans, offering hot beverages to rain-soaked National Guard troops who placed sandbags on the dam well into Tuesday night. (Courtesy photo by Bob Mignard)

Speaking to the Press Wednesday, Bragan commended emergency workers for their efforts. “They’ve done a really good job making sure we don’t lose the dam,” he said. “If we lose the dam, we lose the pond.”

As the rains came to an end Wednesday morning, Mignard said, “I think we’re past the crisis point,” but he pointed out that water from the nearly 4,000 acres of land around the 300-acre pond would continue draining into the pond for days to come. “Like Yogi Berra said, ‘It ain’t over ’til it’s over,’” he quipped.