A home was deemed uninhabitable and a detached garage was destroyed due to a major fire near Lake Villa early Monday morning, authorities said.
Deputy Chief Jay Vance of the Lake Villa Fire Protection District said firefighters were called for a reported structure fire in a detached garage in the 25400 block of West Lincoln Drive in unincorporated Lake County near Lake Villa at 10:32 a.m. Monday.
Lake Villa firefighters arrived at the scene of the blaze in three minutes and found the detached garage fully engulfed in flames, Vance said.
Vance said the fire had also spread to the main home located on the property and started to melt siding on a neighboring house.
“There was only a couple of feet between the garage and the house and the garage was fully engulfed when we got there,” Vance said.
Vance said homeowners had evacuated the property before firefighters arrived.
No injuries were reported among firefighters or pets, Vance added.
Vance said the fire was deemed under control within 10 minutes of arrival, but damage to the garage and the main home resulted in the property being declared uninhabitable, Vance said.
The cause of the fire is unknown at this time and remains under investigation by the Lake Villa Fire Protection District.
Assisting firefighters and equipment were called in from Antioch, Fox Lake, Grayslake, Round Lake, and Wauconda, Vance said.
Lake Villa fire station coverage was handled by Gurnee and Newport fire departments.