Aug 6, 2009 5:40 pm US/Central
Extra-Alarm Fire Breaks Out At Hodgkins Wal-Mart
Nearby Stores Evacuated In Hodgkins Strip Mall
HODGKINS, Ill. (CBS) ―
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An extra-alarm fire broke out at a Wal-Mart store in Hodgkins, Ill.
CBS
An extra-alarm fire was raging Thursday afternoon at a Wal-Mart store in southwest suburban Hodgkins.
The fire broke out early in the afternoon at 9450 W. Joliet Rd. By 1:45 p.m., it had been raised to second alarm level, automatically sending more fire equipment to the scene.
Flames tore through the Wal-Mart sending huge black clouds of smoke in the air and multiple fire departments onto the roof. They were fighting the fire just moments after customers left the store.
The fire was so big, it sent debris flying onto Interstate 55.
CBS 2's Mike Puccinelli reports that the smoke was so bad that some six other businesses nearby shut down because of the Wal-Mart fire. That led to more than 100 evacuations as workers and customers fled the flames.
Smoke billows from a Hodgkins Wal-Mart at The Quarry Shopping Center on LaGrange Road. First responders and witnesses saw plenty of fire, too.
"I just happened to look up and flames were shooting out of the Wal-Mart building about 25 feet up in the air," said witness Ron Garibaldi.
A Brookfield mom was in Wal-Mart shopping with her son when the fire started. Only when she made it outside did she realize the seriousness of the evacuation order.
"I was scared that we were in there, so I'm happy everyone is safe," said witness Jessica Hofsteadter.
Chief Dan Hermes of the Pleaseantview Fire Protection District called in more than 75 firefighters from the surrounding area when he realized that it was a potentially devastating roof fire.
"Roof fires are very dangerous, and especially if you get a fire underneath the roofing, it can travel very far," Hermes said. "That's why we went to a 3-11 in case we had to open up that roof and stop it. So it could've been a lot worse, but we were lucky. No injuries."
Firefighters were inside the building to ensure the fire did not extend to the interior. But there was extensive water damage, particularly in the new part of the building.
A birthday party fell victim to the fire. At Justice Just For Girls, a 7-year-old girl was having a party when the fire broke out.
"We were doing their hair for one little girl's birthday," said employee Shannon Thomas.
But safety comes first, so the manager made the difficult decision to cancel the party.
"It was really sad because it was a little girl's 7th birthday and she was really excited to come in the store, and have her birthday party, and it was all ruined because of the flames and the smoke," Thomas said. "She was very traumatized. She was crying, and we had to relocate her birthday party."
Chief Hermes said roofing material caught fire. A construction crew is working on an expansion project at the Wal-Mart at this time. But Hermes says it's too early to say whether a construction mishap was to blame for the fire.
Several of the stores that closed earlier due to smoke are now re-opened for business. Wal-Mart will remain closed for the rest of the day Thursday, and possibly for the rest of the weekend.
CBS 2's Mike Puccinelli, Kris Habermehl and Chris Selfridge contributed to this report.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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