Elgin fire displaces 17

A fire ripped through the attic of a two-story, multifamily Elgin home Saturday night, displacing the 17 people who lived there, according to the Elgin Fire Department.

Battalion Chief Bryan McMahan said the department responded just after 10 p.m. Saturday to the 600 block of Jay Street.

Though the house had working smoke detectors, it was neighbors who alerted occupants to the fire.

“Even if the smoke detectors work, if there’s no smoke in the living space, they’re not going to go off,” McMahan said.

McMahan said firefighters were able to put the fire out quickly and crews left the scene by shortly after midnight.

The damage estimate is between $50,000 and $70,000. McMahan said the house is still structurally sound, for the most part, but water used to put out the fire caused damage, as did the loss of insulation in the blaze.

There were at least 10 people home at the time of the fire, according to McMahan. None of them were hurt. Neither were any firefighters.

An investigation into the cause of the fire is ongoing.