Little Village Pallet Factory, 6 Trucks Destroyed In Extra-Alarm Fire
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Low water pressure hampered firefighters as they spent several hours overnight extinguishing an extra-alarm blaze at a pallet business in the Little Village neighborhood.
CBS 2's Ed Curran reports the fire started around 11:15 p.m. in the 2500 block of West 25th Street, and eventually spread to three buildings, and engulfed at least six semi-trailer trucks. The 3-11 alarm fire brought nearly 250 firefighters to the scene.
"We had three buildings on fire, multiple truck trailers on fire; used a lot of manpower to extinguish this," Deputy Fire Commissioner Anthony Vasquez said.
Crews had a difficult time fighting the huge fire, as there was low water pressure in the area. Firefighters had to stretch hoses up to a couple blocks away to get better pressure from other hydrants. The Fire Department also contacted the Western Avenue pumping station to deliver more water to the area, so crews would have enough water pressure to put out the blaze.
"We did have an issue with water. When you supply large volume pumpers in large numbers, it diminishes the water supply in the surrounding area. We also had assistance from the Water Department to increase pressure," Vasquez said.
Thousands of wooden pallets helped fuel the blaze, sending massive plumes of smoke into the night sky. Three buildings and half a dozen trucks were destroyed.
Though the fire was mostly extinguished by 1 a.m., crews remained on the scene as of 6 a.m. to douse hot spots and prevent the fire from flaring up again.
No injuries were reported.
Officials have not said what the likely cause was, but police said the area was being treated as a crime scene. The entire scene was cordoned off with red crime scene tape after the fire was out.
