Crime & Safety

Plainfield Township House a 'Total Loss' Following Suspicious Fire, Officials Say

Investigators are trying to determine the source of the blaze; early speculation is it could have been set by a vagrant trying to keep warm in the vacant house.

A vacant Plainfield Township home went up in flames early Friday morning in a fire that is being called "suspicious" by Jon Stratton, deputy chief of the Plainfield Fire Protection District.

The house at 2401 Flower, just off Gaylord Road, was fully engulfed when firefighters arrived on the scene at about 5:35 a.m., according to Stratton.

A total of 54 firefighters from Plainfield, Lockport, Oswego, Channahon, Minooka, Troy and Romeoville needed nearly 25 minutes to get it under control, Stratton said. The house, valued at about $180,000, is a total loss, he said.

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Investigators are trying to determine how the fire started, but it's possible that someone who was squatting in the house may have accidentally started it while trying to keep warm, Stratton said. Neighbors have reported vagrants living in the structure in the past; the house's owner is not known, he said.

The fire was particularly difficult to fight, Stratton said, because there was a detached two-car garage, a large shed and an in-ground pool surrounding the structure. Lack of lighting made visibility difficult and live power lines that fell during the course of the fire made it dangerous, he said.

Find out what's happening in Plainfieldwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Stratton stressed that while the house is near U.S. 30 and Caton Farm Road -- not far from Hazelwood Drive, where a have been set -- "there is no indication at this time that there is any connection."


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