May 15, 2009 10:12 am US/Central
Burning Car Destroys House In Hanover Park
No Injuries, But Serious Damage
HANOVER PARK, Ill. (CBS) ―
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An fire in a parked car tore a hole in the side of a house in Hanover Park on May 15, 2009.
CBS
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An explosion tore a hole in the side of a house in Hanover Park on May 15, 2009.
CBS
The collapse of a northwest suburban duplex early Friday was caused by a car that caught fire in a family's Hanover Park driveway and spread to their home, fire officials said.
About 3 a.m., crews responded to a reported explosion in a duplex at 2150 Laurel Ave., according to a Hanover Park Fire lieutenant.
When crews arrived, however, they found a car in the home's driveway had caught fire and spead to the home, according to Hanover Park Fire Chief Craig Haigh.
Haigh said the "explosion" neighbors reported was likely the popping of tires and airbags and other "things that pop in a car."
Initial reports stated that people were trapped in the home, Haigh said, but when firefighters entered they found just two cats.
"We launched an aggressive search into the house under heavy fire conditions," Haigh said. "As we were trying to extinguish [the fire] there was a catastrophic failure of a bedroom floor directly over the garage."
A neighbor, Jerry Colatuono, described the scene.
"I saw smoldering. There was still fire going on, and there was a big truck right to my right over here that was just blowing water at the house, and I was quite shocked to see all these vehicles," Colatuono said. "I believe there were three or four cities out here trying to put the fire out."
Realizing the home's occupants were safe and with neighbors, fire crews worked from outside the home to extinguish the blaze after the entire floor system on one side of the home collapsed, Haigh said.
One firefighter injured his knee after he was struck with debris and was being treated at a local hospital, Haigh said. His injuries were not serious.
The fire tore a huge hole in the side of the home from the first floor to the second story. In the front of the house, the garage and an addition above it were completely blown out, and a car in the driveway was also burned up.
"There was massive damage to the house," Haigh said, adding that the side of the home with a "lightweight" flooring system was completely destroyed. The other side of the duplex was in "great shape," he said.
A family of four lived in the home, and a chaplain from the Hanover Park Fire Department was working to find them a place to stay.
One of the cats firefighters rescued was severely burned and had to be euthanized shortly after the fire was extinguished. The other cat was reportedly doing well.
The fire was extinguished about 4:15 a.m., and investigators remained on the scene at 8:30 a.m. Friday trying to determine what caused the car to catch fire.
Haigh said it was likely an electrical malfunction.
The STNG Wire contributed to this report.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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