Fire hits home of Cary deputy fire chief

Cary firefighters put out a blaze Tuesday morning that erupted in the house of Deputy Fire Chief William Gitzke.

It took firefighters half an hour to extinguish a fire in the basement of Gitzke's home in the 200 block of Bell Drive, according to the fire department.

No one was hurt, but the home was left uninhabitable. A cleaning person who was in the home at the time of the fire escaped unharmed. A damage estimate was not available.

Gitzke plans to stay with family in the area, firefighters said.

The deputy chief was the on-duty shift commander at the time of the fire. When Gitzke discovered the fire was at his home, he transferred command to another fire official and did not participate in fighting the fire or the subsequent investigation, according to the department.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation. Firefighters do not believe it was suspicious. Because it occurred at the home of a fire official, the Illinois State Fire Marshal is conducting the investigation.

Firefighters from Algonquin-Lake in the Hills, Crystal Lake, Fox River Grove, McHenry, Nunda Rural and Wauconda assisted on the scene.