Lake Co. official' s house hit by lightning

A Fremont Township trustee and his family were forced from their home early Friday after lightning sparked an attic fire, authorities said.

No one in Trustee Mike Hayek's family was hurt in the blaze on the 20300 block of Windflower Court near Mundelein. One firefighter suffered minor injuries, authorities said.

The house, however, is uninhabitable. The heat badly damaged the beams supporting the roof, Hayek's wife, Debbie Hayek said, and much of the family's belongings were ruined by smoke and water.

"The walls are dripping and the plaster is caving in," she said. "We're trying to box up everything we can."

The fire started shortly before 4 a.m. The family was awoken by the sound of the thunder that accompanied the lightning strike, Debbie Hayek said.

"There was a really loud crash of thunder that sounded like a bomb," she said. "It rocked the house."

It also set off the alarm of a minivan parked in the driveway. When Mike Hayek went outside to check on the vehicle and the house, Debbie Hayek said, he saw and smelled smoke.

Mike Hayek called 911 and got his wife, their children and their many pets safely out of the house.

Firefighters arrived and found smoke and sparks coming from the roof eaves. They contained the blaze to the attic, extinguishing it in about 30 minutes, said Tony Rodkey, public education coordinator for the Countryside Fire Protection District.

The injured firefighter suffered unspecified injuries. He was treated at Condell Medical Center in Libertyville and released, Rodkey said.

Crews from the Mundelein, Libertyville, Lincolnshire-Riverwoods and Lake Zurich fire departments assisted on the scene. The American Red Cross also responded.

Damage to the house was estimated at $130,000.

The Hayeks planned to spend Friday night at an area hotel. Debbie Hayek hopes they can be back home in three to six months, after the house is repaired.

As she and her family tried to salvage their belongings Friday afternoon, Debbie Hayek was grateful for the support they received from neighbors.

"They've all been there to lean on," she said. "They've been very comforting."