A midnight house fire in Zion on Saturday caused $200,000 in damage and left a resident with minor smoke inhalation and a firefighter hospitalized with a minor arm injury, fire officials said.
The Zion Fire & Rescue Department and Zion Police Department responded at 12:08 a.m. Saturday to the 3200 block of Gabriel Avenue in Zion for a report of a structure fire.
Emergency responders arrived and found heavy fire coming from the garage and front windows of the two-story house, Zion Fire & Rescue Chief Justin Stried said.
The fire was also threatening neighboring houses.
Firefighters quickly deployed hose lines to douse the fire and to protect the homes on both sides of the house fire.
The Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) was activated to the box alarm level, bringing in additional fire apparatus from departments in Lake and Kenosha counties.
“Homes to the north and south suffered heat damage to their siding and windows, but fortunately due to the quick actions of the firefighters, the actual fire was able to be stopped from spreading to those structures,” Stried said.
Firefighters’ main concerns were that the fire was in the middle of the night and there could be occupants inside the house.
Crews were initially unable to make entry to search the house for occupants due to the extent of the fire, Stried said.
“Command officers were soon alerted to the fact that all occupants had escaped safely and were with neighbors,” Stried said.
Once crews got the fire somewhat under control, they made entry into the home and conducted searches to confirm no one was inside.
Firefighters were also concerned with the fire impinging on the homes to the north and south, Stried said, however, crews were able to keep the fire itself from spreading to either home.
A resident was treated at the scene for minor smoke inhalation and they were not transported to the hospital.
A firefighter suffered a minor arm injury and was transported to Vista Medical Center East in Waukegan for evaluation, Stried said.
Fire officials believe the fire started in the garage.
Investigators are still working on determining the exact cause of the fire.
A preliminary damage estimate is at $200,000, Stried said.
The American Red Cross was requested to the scene to assist the displaced residents.
Firefighters remained on the scene for around three hours.
Fire officials are urging the public to understand the importance of having working smoke detectors in their homes.
“We cannot understate the importance of having working smoke detectors in ALL levels of your home,” Stried said.
“This is especially important if a fire breaks out in your home while sleeping,” Stried added.
The Zion Fire & Rescue Department was assisted at the scene by the Beach Park, Waukegan, Gurnee, Winthrop Harbor, Pleasant Prairie, Kenosha, Bristol, Lake Forest, Newport Township, Lake Villa, North Chicago, Libertyville and Antioch fire departments.
The Zion Emergency Services and Disaster Agency (ESDA) also assisted at the scene.