Fire damages Gurnee donut shop, neighboring retailer in strip mall

A fire gutted a Gurnee donut shop and caused smoke damage to a neighboring storefront in a strip mall Saturday, authorities said.

Several passers-by reported smoke coming out of Gurnee Donuts on the 4900 block of Grand Avenue about 5 p.m., Gurnee Lt. Heath Graham said.

Firefighters evacuated the strip mall of about a dozen tenants and brought the blaze under control within roughly 20 minutes.

Heavy heat and smoke left the business with an estimated $100,000 in damage, Graham said.

"It was basically a total loss inside," he said.

Smoke caused about $30,000 in damage to neighboring HoneyBaked Ham, but that business is expected to reopen Sunday.

Investigators continue to probe the cause of the fire, but nothing appears suspicious, Graham said. No one was inside the donut shop.