A man was forced to leap into the water for safety after his boat caught on fire and became engulfed in flames on Fox Lake near Antioch Tuesday afternoon, authorities said.
The Antioch Fire Department and Lake County Sheriff’s Office responded around 1:31 p.m. Tuesday to the area of Captain’s Quarters, 38283 North Bolton Place in unincorporated Antioch, for a report of a boat fire.
Antioch Fire Department Battalion Chief Ryan Keefe said the boat caught on fire on Fox Lake approximately 200 yards from shore.
The boat was fully engulfed in flames by the time the fire department arrived.
Firefighters deployed a boat, which has a 500-gallon-per-minute water pump onboard, and traveled out on the water to the fire, Keefe said.
Fire crews worked for approximately an hour to extinguish the fire, bringing the boat to shore and conducting overhaul operations to extinguish hidden fires.
Keefe said the boat was completely destroyed and left a total loss due to the fire damage. No injuries were reported.
Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said the boat had recently been serviced.
One of the two engines caught on fire while the man was on his way back to the dock.
The operator initially tried extinguishing the fire but the flames spread too quickly, Covelli said.
He was forced to jump into the water and a good Samaritan on a pontoon boat assisted him from the water.
Keefe said the cause of the fire remains under investigation by the Antioch Fire Department, Lake County Sheriff’s Office and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources Conservation Police.