Cary-area home destroyed in early morning fire
A Cary-area house was engulfed in flames early Monday morning, a blaze that took the collaborative effort of 17 fire departments to extinguish and resulted in a total loss of the dwelling.
An off-duty Cary firefighter arrived at Holly Lynn Drive at 6:44 a.m., according to a news release. The first of the fire units arrived one minute later.
No one was inside and no injuries were reported among civilians. One Cary firefighter on the scene reported not feeling well and was treated by paramedics on scene before being taken in an ambulance to Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital in Barrington, according to the news release. The firefighter is reported to be in good condition.
The house is in a rural area that does not have fire hydrants, so first responders had to set up a rural water supply operation using portable water pools to bring water to the scene, according to the news release.
Given this, the Cary Fire Protection District activated the Mutual Aid Box Alarm System to bring in more firefighters and resources from neighboring towns.
The fire was reported to be under control at 8:16 a.m., but first responders remained on scene for several more hours putting out hot spots and searching for possible fire, Cary Fire Protection District Lt. Michael Douglass said Monday.
"This was a big house, and with the big house, it took a lot longer than usual," he said.
The house was determined to be a total loss. Damage estimates were not available Monday.
The cause of the blaze remains unknown. Douglass said the fire does not appear to have originated from any kind of suspicious activity.
In total, 27 Cary firefighters assisted in putting out the fire using two fire engines, a tower ladder truck, a squad, two ambulances and three command units, according to the release.
The fire departments that initially assisted the Cary Fire Protection District in responding to the fire include Algonquin-Lake in the Hills, Barrington, Barrington-Countryside, Fox River Grove, Nunda Rural and Wauconda fire departments.
After the alarm system was activated, Crystal Lake, East Dundee, Lake Zurich, Long Grove, McHenry, Mundelein, Palatine Rural, Rolling Meadows, Woodstock and Wonder Lake departments also assisted.