Briefs: Cats die in house fire

No one was injured, although two pet cats were killed Friday after a fire broke out inside a Palatine home. Palatine Battalion Chief Mike Freese said when they responded to the fire about 12:50 p.m. at the home on the 300 block of North Everett Drive, smoke was billowing out of the chimney. Firefighters had the blaze under control in about 20 minutes, however Freese said the single-story house had significant fire, heat and smoke damage. While no damage estimate was immediately available, Freese said the house was uninhabitable. The two homeowners, Freese said, were not home at the time of the fire. Freese said they are not sure yet where the fire started and that the case remains under investigation.

No flooding in Des Plaines

While there is flooding upriver, the Des Plaines River isn't expected to create problems in Des Plaines. It's expected to crest at 4.7 feet on Sunday, the National Weather Service said Friday. The river has to hit at least 5 feet for the water to creep onto forest preserve roads. Forecasts are revised daily based on precipitation and water levels upstream.

Police union seeks support

The union representing Mount Prospect patrol officers and sergeants is conducting its yearly telephone fundraising event and the police department is reminding people that solicitations on behalf of the Metropolitan Alliance of police are made by employees of professional fundraising enterprises as officers are prohibited by department policy from soliciting money over the phone for any purpose. If solicitors claim to be Mount Prospect police officers, they are misrepresenting themselves, the department said in a release. Funds collected go to the union, not the police department.

Streets reopen after work

The intersection of Busse Avenue and Emerson Street in Mount Prospect has reopened after being closed for several weeks for a facelift that included wider sidewalks with brick pavers, landscaping, pedestrian lighting and benches as well as infrastructure improvements.