Fire sweeps through St. Charles plant

A fire early Tuesday caused $250,000 in damage to a St. Charles manufacturing plant and left one firefighter with minor injuries, officials said.

The two-alarm blaze was reported shortly after midnight at Smurfit-Stone Container Corp., 417 37th Ave. Firefighters arrived at 12:06 a.m. to find "heavy dark smoke" billowing from the south side of the building, according to a news release.

A dozen fire departments in all, including St. Charles,' responded to the fire, which required significant manpower because of its size and scale, officials said. Occupants made it out safely before firefighters arrived.

It took several hours to bring the fire under control. Firefighters said the bulk of the flames were in a storage area for recyclable materials, which might have contributed to the fire's intensity.

One firefighter was treated at a hospital for unspecified minor injuries and released, officials said. Damage was estimated at $250,000 to the building and its contents.

The fire's cause was under investigation Tuesday.

A paperboard and paper-based manufacturer headquartered in Chicago, Smurfit-Stone is a leading producer of corrugated containers and retail merchandise displays, among other related items, according to its Web site. The firm has about 180 facilities in the U.S., Canada and Mexico.