Early morning fire guts Algonquin home, but no injuries reported

An early morning fire broke out at a home on the east side of Algonquin this morning, leveling the structure but not causing any injuries.

The fire was reported at about 6:15 a.m. by a passerby who saw smoke from the home on the 0-100 block of Riverview Drive.

Flames were pouring through the roof by the time firefighters from the Algonquin-Lake in the Hills Fire Protection District arrived a short time later, Chief Michael Kern said.

"We basically had to do what we call 'surround and drown,'" Kern said. "We were able to make contact with the owner to make sure nobody was in there at the time of the fire to make sure there were no victims, no animals."

The owner was home earlier in the morning, but had left for work before fire broke out, Kern said.

The fire was brought under control at about 7:15 a.m., but crews remained on the scene into the morning putting out hot spots.

Kern said the cause of the fire was not immediately known,

"Until we get in there, we're not going to know anything," he said. "We need to talk to the homeowner, see what he was doing prior to going to work."