Libertyville landscaper's mulch grinder catches fire

A large mulch grinder caught fire Saturday evening at a landscaping company in Libertyville, authorities said.

The machine at J & E Nursery on the 18800 block of Peterson Road started burning about 7:30 p.m., roughly four hours after employees there had shut it off for the day, said Lt. Bill Bending of the Libertyville Fire Department.

The fire spread from the machine, which the nursery had bought within the past week, to a nearby mulch pile. But it didn't damage any structures.

"The only damage was to the grinder itself," Bending said, describing the machine as roughly 50 feet long with an opening on one side to accept logs and a conveyor belt on the other to spit out mulch. "It was a pretty big machine."

Bending said it took crews about 20 minutes to extinguish the fire.

No one was working at the nursery when the fire began, and no one was injured putting it out.

J & E Nursery is across from the Libertyville Sports Complex at a location visible from Route 45, so Bending said several passers-by saw the blaze and called 911 to report it.

Peterson Road was shut down briefly while firefighters ran a hose line to the fire from a hydrant across the street.

Firefighters from Grayslake, Mundelein and Vernon Hills Countryside assisted with the response.