Residents were left homeless after a fire engulfed a garage and destroyed cars while also damaging the inside of their house in McHenry Friday morning, the second house fire in the McHenry area in less than 24 hours.
The McHenry Township Fire Protection District and McHenry Police Department responded around 7:42 a.m. Friday to the 1800 block of Cashel Lane in McHenry for a report of a structure fire.
McHenry Township Fire Protection District Battalion Chief David Harwood said crews arrived on scene in just over five minutes and found heavy flames showing from a garage.
The garage was attached to a two-story, single-family residence and the fire was extending into the interior of the home.
The incident was upgraded to a Working Fire response to bring in additional fire personnel and equipment, Harwood said.
Firefighters quickly used a deck gun mounted on the first-arriving fire engine to put a large volume of water on the fire while also pulling a hose line from the fire engine into the residence.
Fire crews conducted a search of the entire home and confirmed that all occupants had self-evacuated prior to their arrival.
The fire had extended into the kitchen but was extinguished before it could spread further, Harwood said.
The fire was brought under control within five minutes of the fire departments’ arrival and was fully extinguished within 15 minutes.
Harwood said the house sustained heavy fire and smoke damage and was deemed uninhabitable. Two cars parked in the garage were destroyed.
A damage estimate was not immediately available. There were no injuries to any occupants or firefighters.
Two residents who lived in the home are seeking alternative living arrangements following the fire, Harwood said.
The Cary, Crystal Lake, Fox Lake, Nunda Rural, Round Lake, Spring Grove, Wauconda, Wonder Lake and Woodstock fire departments assisted either at the scene or covering McHenry fire stations.
The McHenry Township Fire Protection District and McHenry Police Department are investigating the cause of the fire.
The incident was the second structure fire that the McHenry Township Fire Protection District responded to in less than 24 hours.
The fire district responded around 11:15 a.m. Thursday to the 4400 block of ElmLeaf Drive in unincorporated McHenry for a report of a structure fire, according to McHenry Township Fire Protection District Battalion Chief Ryan Mastandrea.
Firefighters arrived within four minutes to find a one-story, single-family home with light smoke coming from the attached garage.
All residents were out of the house prior to arrival and firefighters forced entry to the garage and were met with heavy smoke, Mastandrea said.
The incident was upgraded to a Working Fire response, which brought in additional resources.
Mastandrea said firefighters began extinguishing the fire and searching the rest of the home for anyone still inside.
The fire was brought under control within 10 minutes and was contained to the garage. There was minor smoke damage to the interior of the home, which remains habitable.
The Antioch, Cary, Crystal Lake, Fox Lake, Round Lake, Nunda Rural, Richmond, Spring Grove, Wauconda and Wonder Lake fire departments assisted at the scene or covered McHenry fire stations.
There were no injuries reported and the fire is under investigation, Mastandrea said.