Fire at pallet warehouse in Maywood, Illinois, prompts response from multiple departments
Firefighters are investigating after a massive structure fire in Maywood, forcing a stretch of blocks to be closed.
Plumes of smoke could be seen for miles, and hours later, crews are still monitoring for hotspots.
Multiple fire departments responded to the fire around 2:15 p.m. at the warehouse belonging to F & L Pallets in the 1300 block of South 1st Avenue.
"They immediately went into defensive mode because the decision was made that it was not safe to enter the building," said Maywood Fire Chief Craig Bronaugh.
He said no one was inside at the time of the fire, but firefighters faced high winds and hazardous materials inside the structure.
"There were some explosions reported by on-duty personnel while battling this fire. That was more than likely by forklifts that are inside the building that are fueled by propane," Bronaugh said.
Within a short time of the fire, the walls were left burnt and crumbled.
Officials contacted Maywood's water reclamation because chemicals in the building may have mixed with the water and entered the sewage. Bronaugh said the materials inside the building required a long firefight.
"Our master streams can flow as much as 2,000 gallons of water per minute, and we've got five master streams operating, so at some point we'll be at hundreds of thousands of gallons of water," he said.
Bronaugh said that at least 10 fire departments responded to this fire, with at least 75 firefighters needed to address it.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.