Subway Fire Destroys Joliet Restaurant On West Jefferson: Building Faces Teardown In Days Ahead

JOLIET, IL — Joliet lost one of its long-time West Jefferson Street restaurants on Monday afternoon after a devastating fire destroyed the Subway restaurant at 1710 West Jefferson.

According to battalion chief Jim Batusich, at 3:30 p.m., the Joliet Fire Department responded to the Subway for a structure fire. An off-duty firefighter was on Jefferson in front of the business, when he noticed smoke from the roof. He went inside and alerted the workers there was a fire in the roof.

Company 6 arrived within 2 minutes of the call and found heavy smoke coming from the roof vents. Crews were met with heavy fire and smoke as they accessed a narrow staircase; the narrow stairwell to the cockloft had detached from the wall which made access impossible, according to Joliet's battalion fire chief.

"Due to the dangerous conditions inside, crews went to a defensive attack to extinguish the fire," Batusich announced in his press release.

All employees and patrons of Subway exited safely. The Joliet Fire Department remained for two hours extinguishing hot spots and checking for extension. Fire crews from stations 1,5,6,8 and 9 responded and the cause of the fire is under investigation, Batusich said, informing Joliet Patch that the fire originated in the attic and not in the kitchen.