A three-alarm fire Saturday evening at a McHenry home was fueled by wind and caused more than $500,000 in damage, fire officials said.
The McHenry Township Fire Protection District responded around 8:51 p.m. Saturday to the 6700 block of Burning Tree Circle in McHenry for a report of a structure fire.
Firefighters arrived and found a large two-story house fully engulfed in flames, according to McHenry Fire Captain Chris Gumm.
The Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) was activated to the second alarm to bring additional water resources to the neighborhood, which does not have fire hydrants.
Due to the high winds and lack of a water source, the alarm level was upgraded again to the third alarm.
All occupants of the residence escaped prior to firefighters arriving.
“Due to the intense fire created by high winds, fire crews worked for approximately one hour and fifteen minutes to get the fire under control,” Gumm said.
Fire crews remained at the scene for several hours overhauling the building and completing an investigation, Gumm said.
The damage was estimated to exceed $500,000 and the house has been deemed uninhabitable. There were no injuries.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation by the McHenry Township Fire Protection District and the McHenry Police Department.
Firefighters from 18 fire departments assisted, including Cary, Crystal Lake, Fox Lake, Nunda-Rural, Richmond, Spring Grove, Wauconda, Woodstock, Wonder Lake, Fox River Grove, Algonquin, Hebron, Harvard, Huntley, Antioch, Mundelein, Lake Villa, and Round Lake.