The coroner has released the identity of a 73-year-old woman who was found dead in her home after an extra-alarm fire engulfed the residence near McHenry early Wednesday.
The McHenry Township Fire Protection District and McHenry County Sheriff’s Office responded around 1:30 a.m. Wednesday to the 2800 block of North Magellan Drive in unincorporated McHenry for a report of a structure fire.
A neighbor called 911 to report a home nearby was on fire.
It was reported that a female subject was possibly still inside the home in a bedroom.
Sheriff’s deputies arrived and attempted to make entry to the home but were unable to due to the fire engulfing the home, according to the sheriff’s office.
Firefighters arrived in 11 minutes and confirmed heavy flames were showing from the first and second floors of the two-story, single-family home.
Fire officials said crews initially attempted to enter the home to search for occupants and extinguish the fire but could not due to the heavy fire conditions.
Firefighters conducted an attack on the fire from the exterior and then switched to an interior attack and search once conditions improved.
The fire caused extensive damage to the structure and the house was deemed uninhabitable, fire officials said.
The Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) was activated to the box alarm level to bring numerous additional fire departments to the scene.
The incident was eventually upgraded to the third alarm level to bring water tender trucks to the scene.
A deceased female occupant was located in the home during the course of the fire investigation, the sheriff’s office said.
McHenry County Coroner Dr. Michael Rein identified the victim on Thursday as Diana Haddick, 73, of McHenry.
Rein said Haddick resided at the residence where the fire occurred. An autopsy was performed Wednesday and toxicology results are pending.
A firefighter suffered minor injuries and did not need to be transported to the hospital. A second occupant of the home was also injured and released at the scene after being treated.
Fire investigators and the McHenry County Coroner’s Office were called to the scene.
The Algonquin, Antioch, Cary, Fox Lake, Fox River Grove, Grayslake, Greater Round Lake, Harvard, Hebron, Huntley, Lake Villa, Lake Zurich, Nunda, Richmond, Spring Grove, Twin Lakes, Wauconda, Wonder Lake and Woodstock fire departments assisted during the incident.
The American Red Cross and the Salvation Army also assisted at the scene.
The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Office of the Illinois State Fire Marshal and McHenry Township Fire Protection District.