One person was hospitalized after a fire performer accidentally caused a fire during a practice routine inside a garage in Volo Wednesday evening.
The Fox Lake Fire Protection District and Lake County Sheriff’s Office responded around 7:08 p.m. Wednesday to the 100 block of Terra Vista Court in Volo for a report of a structure fire.
Firefighters and sheriff’s deputies arrived to find significant flames and smoke coming from the garage of a townhouse, according to Lake County Sheriff Spokesman Sgt. Christopher Covelli.
A preliminary investigation shows that the residents of the home are fire performers and were rehearsing in their garage, Covelli said.
An accident happened during the practice session and the fire tools used by the performer were dropped. Nearby accelerants that were stored in the area also caught fire.
“This caused a fire which spread quickly. The fire caused extensive damage to the townhome and did spread to adjoining townhome units,” Covelli told Lake and McHenry County Scanner.
Initial reports indicated a possible explosion during the incident, but authorities do not believe there was one.
An adult female was transported by ambulance to Northwestern Medicine Hospital in McHenry with non-life-threatening burn injuries. No one else was injured.
Arson investigators and fire department investigators remain at the scene conducting an investigation.