Above / PN file photos are used to help tell stories such as the structure fire in the 700 Block of Royal Saint George Drive early Saturday.
At 7:05AM on Saturday, January 19, 2019, Naperville’s Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) received a fire alarm activation from a seven-story apartment building located on the 700 block of Royal Saint George Drive. While crews were responding to the scene PSAP received a call from a resident stating there was smoke in the hallway of the sixth floor and another call that there was a small fire in the garbage chute.
PSAP dispatched a General Alarm assignment bringing three engines, two trucks, one squad company, two ALS
ambulances, and two Battalion Commanders to the scene. Truck Company 9 was the first unit to arrive on scene
within 5 minutes of receiving the call. The assignment brought a total of 24 personnel to the incident. Upon
arrival at the scene Truck 9 advised there was nothing showing from the exterior. Further investigation found a
small fire in the basement trash compactor system that extended to the seventh floor roof, through the garbage
chute.
Occupants had begun evacuating the building prior to the arrival of fire department personnel, which was
confirmed by the first arriving company on the scene. Remaining occupants were evacuated by fire companies
and moved to the adjacent complex clubhouse for shelter. Companies initiated an aggressive coordinated fire
attack and located fires in multiple areas of the garbage chute from the basement to the roof of the seventh floor.
Multiple areas with active burning were uncovered and extinguished within two hours of being on the scene. Due
to the amount of resources needed for occupant evacuation and fire extinguishment, the alarm was upgraded to a Box Alarm level and then to a Second Alarm Level bringing an additional nine fire suppression companies, two
ambulances, and multiple chief officers to the scene for a total of 35 additional personnel.
Crews continued to perform extinguishment and overhaul operations for another 60 minutes after the main fire was extinguished.
No injuries were reported and no occupants were displaced as a result of the damage that occurred to the garbage chute system. There were no injuries to any firefighters on the scene.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation, and area of origin has not yet been determined.
The Naperville Fire Department was assisted at the scene by the Naperville Police Department, Naperville Transportation, Engineering, & Development Department (T.E.D.), & fire agencies from multiple surrounding departments. Multiple fire agencies provided station coverage during this incident as well. A total of 11 surrounding fire departments provided assistance to the Naperville Fire Department during this incident.
Submitted by James C. Kubinski, EMT-P. Bureau Chief – E.M.S. for the Naperville Fire Department, with a message, “Take care and be safe.”
