Saugus board thanks fire departments that battled tanker blaze

SAUGUS – The Saugus Board of Selectmen voted Tuesday night to send a letter of appreciation to the various state and local departments that responded to the tanker truck crash and subsequent fire early Saturday morning.Selectmen Chair and State Rep. Donald Wong read aloud the names of the 21 different fire departments that responded along with the Saugus Fire Department, including Lynn, Wakefield, Lynnfield, Revere, Chelsea, Winchester and Melrose.”I want to thank the 21 fire departments that came down,” said Wong, who was at the scene for most of the morning. “I saw first-hand how 22 different fire departments worked as one. Everyone was there working and I can’t say enough.”The selectmen also sent their condolences to the family of Neal Michaud, the 59-year-old truck driver who was killed in the crash.”We send our sympathies to the family of the truck driver,” said Selectman Scott Crabtree. “And we’d also like to recognize all of the public safety officers, fire department, police, DPW, everyone did a fantastic job under those horrific circumstances.”In other business the board approved a transient vendor’s license to Kevin O’Leary, owner of Christmas Island Trees, to open a Christmas tree lot at 60 Water St. from Nov. 25 to Dec. 24 and voted to conduct a site walk-through at the location of a proposed Dunkin’ Donuts drive-through at the Sunoco station at 700 Broadway.Town Meeting member Wayne Brooks, who lives at 846 Broadway, spoke in opposition to the project, citing traffic and safety concerns.”We’ve already been asked to put up with a lot at 770,” said Brooks, referring to the location of the proposed Walmart. “And now this is just overbearing. I think this is asking too much of the residents on and around Route 1.The board voted to reappoint Stephen Carlson and Robert Sacco to the Saugus Historical Commission, and voted to appoint Phil Rando to the board of the Youth and Recreation Commission.The Board also took time to issue citations to Bob Davis and Steve Agganis to commend the two on their work with the Saugus Special Olympics.”On behalf of the board I want to say thank you for your dedication and your time and effort,” said Crabtree.”We do this because we love doing this,” said Agganis. “Saugus to me is my home and my heart so I just want to thank everybody.”