No injuries in partial structure collapse in Palatine

The weight of stormwater on a strip mall in Palatine is blamed for the partial collapse of the structure Saturday night, requiring a 7-Eleven to close indefinitely, fire officials said.

Palatine firefighters were called at 11:30 p.m. during the height of Saturday's storms to the strip mall at 749 W. Palatine Road, Palatine fire officials said.

The building, approximately 100-feet by 40-feet, is occupied by a 7-Eleven on one half, with the other half being a dry cleaners that's been vacant for more than five years, said Palatine Fire Deputy Chief Patrick Gratzianna.

"The half to the east collapsed down onto itself, as well as blowing out the east wall," he said. "The age of it, lack of maintenance and all of the water on it led to the collapse."

Nobody was injured in the 7-Eleven, which was largely unaffected by the collapse. But much of the building was determined to be unstable, he said, leaving the fate of the convenience store unknown.

"It shares that common wall with the half of the building that went down," he said.

It remains closed while building inspectors and insurance companies determine whether it can be salvaged.

It's an older building with wooden trusses for supports rather than the steel supports most strip malls have these days, Gratzianna said. The collapse was a more extreme result of storms that came through the area Saturday, which mostly resulted in wind damage and fallen branches, he said.

"It was kind of a nonevent," Gratzianna said. "(The collapse) is not something to take lightly, but our guys got there and made sure the utilities weren't a concern. There were no rescues to be performed."