House Fire Damages Home, Residents And Dogs Escape: Plainfield FD

PLAINFIELD, IL — Two homeowners and their dogs were able to escape a fast-moving house fire that officials believe started in the garage and spread to the home.

Plainfield Fire Chief Jon Stratton said firefighters responded just after 10 a.m. Sunday to a fire in the 2500 block of Golfview Drive to find a blaze that had spread to the home, back porch and attic.

According to Stratton, a witness, who was an off-duty firefighter from another town, heard someone calling for help and spotted the blaze.

Stratton said the homeowner was doing yard work when he smelled smoke and went to investigate, finding smoke in the garage.

The fire spread quickly, but the husband and wife, along with their dogs, were able to get out of the house. The homeowners were treated at the scene of the fire but not hospitalized, Stratton said.

Stratton said companies from Joliet and Lockport assisted at the scene, where there was no fire hydrant, forcing fire crews to bring in water to fight the blaze.

The fire was brought under control in around 20 minutes, Stratton said, but the house is uninhabitable.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

While mulch is not believed to have been a cause of the Golfview Drive blaze, Stratton said he wanted to warn homeowners not to leave bags of mulch stacked in a garage. Moisture in the bags and the organic material breaking down inside can combust, he said, causing a fire.

"If you get mulch, keep it away from your house and out of your garage," he said.