Fire rips through townhome development in Maine Township
MAINE TOWNSHIP, Ill. (CBS) -- Several families were displaced Thursday night after a massive fire ripped through a townhome development in Maine Township, near Des Plaines.
As CBS 2's Marybel González reported, one firefighter was injured while trying to put out the blaze – which took fire crews about an hour.
Witnesses described a huge fire that engulfed an entire building in flames in just a matter of minutes.
The building that was ravaged by the blaze is located among several similar townhome buildings at Noel Street and Margail Avenue – in unincorporated Maine Township just outside the city limits of Des Plaines and also near Park Ridge. The scene is also a short distance west of Niles' Golf Mill Mall.
Speaking at the scene Thursday evening, North Main Fire Protection District Inspector Scott Peterson said a fire battalion chief coming back from another call was the first to notice the fire at 9320 Noel St. and call it in at 4:07 p.m.
The fire started in one unit of the two-story, four-unit brick building, and quickly spread to all floors, Peterson said. The unit where the fire broke out collapsed.
The fire was contained to one building, Peterson said.
One firefighter suffered burns while fighting the blaze, Peterson said. He was hospitalized with minor injuries.
Firefighters also rescued a couple of pets from one unit, Peterson said.
Dramatic video taken by witness Linda Mitlyng showed the moment the fire ripped through the townhouse building. She was at the scene when it first broke out.
"It ripped through - like just within a matter of minutes, I saw it go from like, 'Okay, it's just in the middle part,' and then the whole place was just engulfed," Mitlyng said.
Other witnesses described hearing a loud bang before the flames erupted.
"It was a very big noise, so I went here, and the flame like was 40 meters out of the roof," another witness said.
CBS 2's Sara Machi talked with a neighbor who was standing outside and watching with friends. She said she had been in the basement of her home studying around 4 p.m. when she heard an enormous bang.
She then came outside and saw flames reflecting and smoke.
Neighbors had a lot of questions and concerns late Thursday.
"Terrified. I don't know if I want to go back in there – even though like I think it might have been like a gas issue; these are all really old houses – so I don't know," said Jigisha Gohel, who lives nearby. "I don't feel comfortable going back in."
The flames were so large, they could be seen from a distance.
Investigators are still looking for what cause the monstrous fire.
"At this time, all the residents of three of the units are accounted for - and possibly the fourth unit is also accounted for," Peterson said.
For the fourth unit, officials needed to ascertain whether the person found in the fourth unit lived there or was visiting.
It is unclear how many people were evacuated, but officials said four families lived the units. They were placed on warming buses provided by Pace that were parked nearby.
Luckily, none of them were injured.
"I was just scared for like the people that live in there," said witness J.R. Nalzaro. "To start off the year on this note - it's kind of a bad note, so it's a little terrifying."
The cause of the fire was under investigation late Thursday. It was not known if the building had working smoke detectors, Peterson said.
Fire officials reminded the public to take the time right now to check that their smoke and carbon monoxide detectors are working properly.
