The coroner has released the identity of a 77-year-old woman who was found dead after a fire at her home in Mundelein, which officials described as a hoarder house that hindered firefighters’ rescue attempts.
The Mundelein Police Department and Mundelein Fire Department responded around 5:24 p.m. Sunday to the 1200 block of Huntington Drive for a report of a structure fire.
Mundelein Fire Chief Bill Lark said a neighbor saw the fire and called 911, informing dispatchers that the residence was occupied by an elderly woman and the home was experiencing hoarder conditions.
Lake County Coroner Jennifer Banek identified the woman on Wednesday as Alicia Bowles, 77, of Mundelein.
Fire crews arrived to find heavy smoke coming from the front and rear of the residence, with heavy flames at the rear of the second floor.
Firefighters attempted to make entry to the home but were met with heavy smoke, high heat and hoarder conditions, Lark said.
The front door could only be opened five to six inches and had to be removed off its hinges.
“These hoarder conditions were also found on the stairwell to the second floor which made accessing the second floor extremely difficult,” Lark said.
Fire crews then began operating from the outside to extinguish the fire due to their inability to fully access the inside of the home.
The Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) was activated to bring additional fire department resources to the scene.
Firefighters eventually extinguished the main body of fire on the first and second floors and then attempted to go inside the home again.
Lark said first responders assumed Bowles was still inside the residence due to there being a car in the driveway of the home.
The Lake County Sheriff’s Office went to Bowles’ place of work and they advised she did not show up for work.
While crews were conducting overhaul operations, they located Bowles in a second-floor bedroom.
Lake County Chief Deputy Coroner Steve Newton said Bowles was located in her bed.
The Lake County Coroner’s Office performed an autopsy Monday morning on the woman.
Preliminary autopsy results are pending toxicology testing, including carbon monoxide levels, Banek said.
Well over a dozen fire investigators were called to the scene from numerous fire departments, along with the Office of the Illinois State Fire Marshal.
Lark said the Mundelein Police Department is assisting in the investigation but foul play is not suspected.
The home had no central heat and space heaters and propane-powered camping heaters were being used inside the home, Lark added.
The Libertyville, Countryside, Lincolnshire, Lake Zurich, Grayslake, Lake Bluff, Wauconda, Long Grove, Arlington Heights, Gurnee, Lake Forest, Lake Villa, Inverness, Barrington, Round Lake, Newport, Zion, Winthrop Harbor, Antioch and Buffalo Grove fire departments assisted at the scene or covered calls in Mundelein.