‘I just want to be whole’: Arlington Heights residents struggle to get homes repaired months after garbage truck blast

Mary Battin’s house was ground zero for the garbage truck fire and explosion that rocked her Arlington Heights neighborhood the afternoon of Dec. 6, 2024.

Video that showed the blast in front of her home on the corner of Euclid and Derbyshire avenues went viral online and made international news. But she’s upset fewer people are paying attention now.

More than six months later, Battin’s three-bedroom ranch remains damaged — windows boarded up, the corner frame broken, and walls and ceilings cracked throughout — while she struggles to get more than $100,000 worth of repairs covered by insurance.

The day after the explosion, a representative of waste hauler Groot told Battin to go through her insurance company, which would pay for repairs and then work to recoup costs from Groot’s insurer through the subrogation process.

“She said, ‘That’s the easiest and fastest way for this to be taken care of.’ And that’s as far from the truth as it really could be,” Battin said.

Battin got repair estimates from two general contractors: one, from her chosen company, was $113,000, and the other, from her insurer’s preferred vendor, was close to $80,000. The insurance company didn’t approve either, but has now recommended a restoration firm come over to her house and give it another look.

“It’s frustrating for me because I just want to be whole,” Battin said. “I just want my house fixed.”

Battin has a bundled insurance package through Progressive, but the homeowner’s portion is underwritten by Homesite Group, a Boston-based firm that was acquired by American Family Insurance in 2014. Battin has been dealing with a local American Family agent.

Sayonada Thomas, a spokeswoman for Homesite, said Friday that officials looked into the status of Battin’s claim and were in contact with her Thursday.

“We are aligned on next steps with the insured for their claim and are actively working towards a swift resolution,” Thomas said.

Battin said Groot’s insurer, ESIS, was unresponsive until she came to an Arlington Heights village board meeting last Monday to ask for help from village officials. A Groot official who subsequently got back to Battin said he reached out to ESIS, but that “nothing is being held up on their end, that your insurer will have to approve the quotes that you have received.”

“I have a famous quote: Do not fix blame, fix problem,” Battin said. “And that’s kind of where I’m at. If you guys are still haggling over whose fault it was, that’s great, you guys keep haggling it. But fix my house. I really don’t care whose fault it was. But I know it wasn’t mine.”

Will Reilly, an assistant district manager at Groot, told the Daily Herald Friday the company is awaiting a final repair estimate for Battin’s home.

“We will continue to work with this homeowner and the homeowners’ insurance carrier in good faith to resolve her property damage claim promptly, as we have done with all other homeowners who had property damage,” Reilly said.

‘It was terrifying’

Battin was at work two miles away when the explosion happened on a late Friday afternoon in December.

Compressed natural gas cylinders atop the truck violently ruptured, pealing off siding and roofs from the nearby homes, shattering windows, deploying car air bags, and sending truck parts and other debris several blocks away. Two police officers and one firefighter who had just gotten to the scene were injured, but not seriously.

Battin’s next-door neighbor, Lynn Bengtsen, was just getting home when the blast occurred.

“I could see the flames were shooting up so high. I was walking toward my house when the truck blew. It was terrifying. … Pieces of metal were projectiles everywhere,” said Bengtsen, who described the piece that shattered her front window “as big as my hand.”

Bengtsen, a longtime teaching assistant at Windsor Elementary School two blocks away, remains shaken.

On June 6 — six months to the day of the blast — Bengtsen was outside with kindergartners during a field day when another garbage truck was on fire in front of the school.

“We had to get all the kids into the building. It was scary because this is a neighborhood that knows garbage trucks can explode,” she said. “We were afraid it was going to blow again.”

Instead, the truck driver dumped the burning contents on the street and firefighters were able to put it out.

An investigation by the Arlington Heights Fire Department into the Dec. 6 fire pointed to mechanical failures on the Groot truck, which was unable to dump its load or activate any of 10 pressure relief devices that would have emptied the vehicle’s five fuel containers. During a public presentation in February, Fire Chief Lance Harris attributed the fire and blast to a lithium ion battery collected during recycling pickup.

Harris and fire department officials held a neighborhood meeting at Windsor school last week as they launch a public education campaign about where to dispose of lithium ion batteries. Residents can drop them off at village hall, the senior center, or schedule a special collection with Groot at (800) 244-1977 or vah@groot.com.

Homes damaged, but livable

Battin’s house was closest to the truck. The explosion shattered four windows, ripped off siding, separated ceilings and base boards from walls, popped out nails, cracked walls and ceilings, and put gaping holes in the garage and fence. The house quickly shifted back and forth — like a “concussive wave,” she said — though structural engineers don’t believe the foundation is compromised.

Three other homes in the vicinity were badly damaged. Repair work started last week on one of them, and last month on another.

But across the street, neighbor Chris Kopec still has four boarded up windows, torn off shingles, siding and soffit, and cracks on walls in every room inside.

He got estimates from contractors ranging from $50,000 to $100,000. But fearing his premium might go up, Kopec first tried talking to Groot and its insurer directly.

“They told me to open up a claim with my insurance, which I did,” he said. “But ever since I did that, Groot has been very hands off, not responsive.”

Repairs are underway at the home of Bengtsen, who says her insurer, Allstate, has been helpful.

Despite the damages, Battin has remained in her house, which she purchased five years ago after the previous owner did extensive renovations down to the studs.

“I guess the bad news is that it’s still livable,” she said. “Or is that the good news? I’m not sure.”