Another East-Side Elgin House Uninhabitable After Early-Morning Fire
If you don’t think fire danger is high in March, take a look at some of the recent stories.
Nine days after a townhouse fire took the life of a 4-year-old in Aurora and less than a week after a backyard deck fire on Elgin’s East Side, a fire destroyed another home this morning, once again on Elgin’s East Side.
(CREDIT: Google Maps)
According to an Elgin Fire Department news release, firefighters responded at around 5 a.m. today (Friday, March 8, 2019) to the 600 block of Lower Wellington for a report of a possible structure fire.
Responding fire companies found a one-story home with a walk out basement engulfed in flames.
The entire basement, the rear of the home, and part of the first floor were on fire, Elgin Fire Department Cpt. Dick Cummings said.
The first arriving engine company arrived on scene in about five minutes. An upgrade to a box alarm was used to cover the Elgin fire stations.
Four hose and lines and one tower ladder stream were used to attack and control the fire, officials said. The fire was brought under control in about 40 minutes.
The home suffered extensive damage and minor damage to a detached garage. Initial damage estimates are in excess of $150,000.
The home was unoccupied at the time of the fire. There were no civilian or firefighter injuries due to the fire.
The home was red-tagged as it is uninhabitable and Code Enforcement was notified for follow-up. The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Elgin Fire Department Fire Investigation Team.
