According to Sheriff Armando Fontoura, Rivera had been riding his mountain bicycle when he lost control of it near the edge of the road and plummeted approximately 20 feet onto a rocky ledge.

Fire Chief Roger Audette said the existing, four-garage-bay part of the station will not hold any front-line fire trucks or ambulances, instead only holding second-line trucks, equipment, and rescue vehicles and supplies not usually used on most emergency calls. That will allow the building to remain in use without being upgraded to meet the higher standards.

Audette said the fire department worked with the city’s code office and reviewed state and federal fire codes and determined it was not required that the older section of Hartford, if it doesn’t hold front-line fire or rescue apparatus, meet the modern standards for natural disasters.

Firefighters were stretching a line from the truck to reach the blaze beneath the vehicle's hood and dashboard, DeYoung said.

"We were 150 feet away and heard a pop. We thought it was a tire," he said. "Turns out it was an air piston shot from underneath the hood."