A Brookline ladder truck was put out of commission last night after a brief electrical fire scorched the underside of the vehicle while it was parked inside the Brookline Village Fire Station.

Fire Chief Peter Skerry said the flames were quickly doused by firefighters who saw smoke coming from under the truck and grabbed a nearby water extinguisher. It took less than two gallons of water to put out the fire, but the truck was left with "substantial damage" on the underside of the crew cab, particularly to the electrical wiring and harness and air lines that feed into the vehicle's rear brakes, according to the chief.

The fire truck was towed from the station shortly after the fire was put out around 8:30 p.m. Skerry said the truck is being evaluated at a dealership in Walpole.

"We'll probably take a week or so to get an estimate from them," he said.

The fire occurred in a 12-year-old spare ladder truck that had been in use for the last two week while another vehicle was in for service, according to Skerry. He said mechanics were able to come in and finish up work on the second truck so it could be brought back on line today.

"The fire department isn't suffering any lack of resources because of the damage to the truck," he said.

The chief said the spare truck was already due for "extensive refurbishment" before the fire took place. The truck was insured by the town for collision, but the town's procurement officer is currently looking into how much it is covered for fire damage.

Skerry said it is "extremely rare" for fires to occur inside fire stations, though he noted that the Brookline Village Fire Station was the site of another fire some 40 years ago. You can still see timbers charred by the blaze in the station's cellar, he said.