Pioneer Press Newspapers
PARK RIDGE, Ill. — A smoke detector alerted a Park Ridge resident to a fire in her home Monday just before 9 p.m. and she was able to escape with her dogs, according to Park Ridge fire officials, who said 14 fire departments from neighboring towns assisted in fighting the blaze.
The Park Ridge Fire Department was dispatched to the 900 block of Hansen Place, just off Northwest Highway, for a reported house fire at 8:55 p.m., according to a fire department news release. The first responders arrived at 8:57, saw heavy fire coming out of a window on the first floor and upgraded the response to a confirmed fire, summoning additional personnel from neighboring fire departments.
The homeowner was present and told firefighters no other people were in the home. Fire Department officials said the fire started in a first-floor bedroom and caused an estimated $300,000 damage; as of Tuesday, they had not determined the cause of the fire.
On the scene Monday night, Park Ridge firefighters addressed the fire from the exterior and then entered the home to fight the blaze, according to the release, and at 9:22, they upgraded to a box alarm, which brought additional fire companies to the scene. They brought the fire under control with no injuries reported.
Park Ridge firefighters were assisted on scene by fire companies from the Des Plaines , Elk Grove, Glenview, Morton Grove, Niles, Northfield, North Maine, Schiller Park, Skokie, and Wheeling Fire Departments. Additionally, the Park Ridge fire stations were staffed by mutual aid crews from the Elk Grove Village, Evanston, and Northbrook Fire Departments and the Rosemont Public Safety Department. The latter group handled one other call for service while Park Ridge firefighters were fighting the blaze.
Park Ridge fire officials stressed that the fire shows the importance of having working smoke detectors, urging residents to have multiple detectors in residences, including in every bedroom.
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