Elgin residents displaced after basement fire

The residents of an Elgin home were displaced after a Wednesday morning basement fire, officials said.

Elgin Fire Department Battalion Chief Bryan McMahan said the fire began around 10:07 a.m. on the 1000 block of Bellevue Avenue. He said the residents evacuated the house, which had light smoke coming from it, before firefighters arrived, but they needed help rescuing a cat.

Officials determined the fire started at an electric panel in the basement, McMahan said, and ComEd was called to disable and pull the meter. The city’s code enforcement department red-tagged the home, resulting in the residents’ displacement, he said.

McMahan said no injuries were reported. He did not know when the fire was extinguished or the estimated cost of damages, but he said the fire was contained to the basement area.