An alert 6-year-old girl spotted a fire that tore through a house in Round Lake, causing $250,000 in damage and leaving a family homeless, in Round Lake Sunday afternoon.
The Fox Lake Fire Protection District responded around 1:52 p.m. Sunday to the 1900 block of Marsh Meadow Lane in Round Lake for a report of a structure fire.
Fox Lake Fire Protection District Battalion Chief Larry VanHoorelbeke said a 6-year-old girl was across the street when she noticed smoke coming from behind a house.
She notified her parents who then called 911 to report the incident.
Responding firefighters reported seeing a smoke header in the distance.
Fire crews arrived and found heavy smoke showing from a two-story, single-family house, VanHoorelbeke said.
Firefighters pulled multiple hose lines and entered the home to make an aggressive fire attack.
The fire was on the first and second floors of the home, along with the attic.
The Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) was activated to the box alarm level to bring additional fire departments to the scene.
The fire was brought under control in approximately 30-35 minutes. It caused approximately $250,000 in damage.
VanHoorelbeke said it was unknown whether the home was a total loss but that there was significant damage throughout the entire residence.
The family that resided at the home has been displaced. The residents were not home at the time of the fire, VanHoorelbeke said.
No injuries were reported to firefighters and no pets were reported in the home.
VanHoorelbeke said investigators are looking into a portable fire pit that was underneath the first-floor deck near the walkout basement as a possible cause.
The fire pit was up against combustible materials. The fire is not considered suspicious in nature.
The Round Lake, Lake Villa, Wauconda, Libertyville, Countryside, Mundelein, Antioch, Grayslake and Gurnee assisted at the scene. The Richmond and Salem, Wisconsin, fire departments covered Fox Lake fire stations.