Residents were displaced from their home after their neighbor’s burning leaves got out of control and spread to their house Friday afternoon near Round Lake, fire officials said.
The Greater Round Lake Fire Protection District and Lake County Sheriff’s Office responded around 2 p.m. Friday to the 24700 block of Clinton Avenue in unincorporated Round Lake for a report of a structure fire.
A resident was burning leaves in their yard when the fire spread to their neighbor’s house, Greater Round Lake Fire Protection District Battalion Chief Eric Hair said.
Firefighters arrived and found heavy fire and smoke coming from the rear of the two-story house.
Crews quickly contained the fire and stopped it from spreading to a nearby residence, Hair said.
A total of three hose lines were deployed and water tenders were used because the area had no fire hydrants.
Around 12,000 gallons of water were shuttled to the scene, Hair said.
The fire was brought under control around 20 minutes after firefighters arrived.
They worked for another hour to extinguish hotspots, Hair said.
No one was injured and the residents of the affected house evacuated before crews arrived.
The house is uninhabitable, Hair added. A damage estimate was not immediately available.
Fire officials remind residents that open burning of non-woody yard waste, like leaves and grass, is prohibited at all times in unincorporated Lake County.
The Lake County Board approved new burning restrictions in January and they went into effect in June.
Unincorporated residents are permitted to burn woody yard waste, like sticks, branches and tree limbs, annually from November 1 to March 31.
Burning garbage, refuse or construction materials remains prohibited in unincorporated Lake County.
The Greater Round Lake Fire Protection District was assisted at the scene by the Grayslake, Fox Lake, Wauconda, Lake Villa and Gurnee fire departments.
The Mundelein and McHenry Township fire departments provided coverage for the Greater Round Lake Fire Protection District during the incident.