Barrington Hills home 'totaled' in fire
A luxury mansion in Barrington Hills was destroyed Saturday afternoon by a stubborn fire in an affluent neighborhood with no fire hydrants, authorities said.
Crews requested extra manpower and equipment from departments across the Northwest suburbs and as far as the Wisconsin border to extinguish the blaze in the two-story home on the 20 block of Rolling Hills Drive.
Two factors crippled their progress: high winds and no access to water. Thirty tankers - Hebron Fire Department sent one - carrying water were deployed to the home, said to be 8,000 to 10,000 square feet.
One firefighter from the Barrington Countryside Fire Protection District suffered a minor injury during the response from the fire station, authorities said. He was later released from the hospital.
Sam Daou, a neighbor, said the house is a complete loss, with the roof collapsing into the top floor.
"The house is totaled," he said early Saturday evening. "It's still burning."
He said the residents are renting the home and were seen burning leaves before the fire. About 2:30 p.m., he heard sirens and saw flames from the home's garage.
"Suddenly, the whole roof picked up, and it's gone," he said of the fire's rapid spread.
He and his neighbors have not been evacuated from their homes because acres of land separate the properties.
Barrington Countryside Fire Chief Jeff Swanson said crews were called about 2:38 p.m.
Two residents were home at the time and evacuated on their own before firefighters arrived, he said.
Firefighters began an "aggressive interior attack" against the fire from the inside, Swanson said. But firefighters were driven out by the heat, reverting to a defensive attack outside, he said.
Flames also spread a field behind the home, but that brush fire was quickly put out.
By 6:30 p.m., the bulk of the fire - mostly in the attic - had been extinguished, Swanson said. A total of 40 fire companies remained at the home, putting out hot spots.
Swanson couldn't comment yet on the cost of the damage.
• Daily Herald photographer Bob Chwedyk contributed to this report.