Fire Guts Old J&M Moving Truck Rental Business

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Employees doing plumbing work on the 2,400-square-foot building at 2427 Plainfield Road, just northwest of Caton Farm Road, smelled smoke and called the fire department at about 6:15 p.m., Deputy Chief Jon Stratton said.

By the time, Plainfield and Lockport township fire departments arrived on the scene, fire had consumed the central part of the building and spread up the walls into the rafters, he said. By the time the blaze was extinguished, the structure was a total loss, he said.

The building, valued at more than $300,000, was being renovated for a new tenant, the owner told Stratton.

Fire departments from as far away as Oswego and Lisle were called to help fight the blaze and to man Plainfield's fire houses while personnel were on the scene, Stratton said. It took nearly three hours to knock out all of the "hot spots" and conduct an on-scene investigation, he said.

Although the building is located in unincorporated Crest Hill, right on the border of Joliet, it is technically part of the Plainfield Township Fire District.