Structure Fire 30W200 Block of Ferry Road Warrenville IL.

For Immediate Release

Monday, July 15, 2024
Andrew Dina
Fire Chief
Warrenville Fire Protection District
(630) 857-0298

Warrenville Fire Protection District Media Release

WARRENVILLE, Ill. — At approximately 11:39 am on Monday, July 15, 2024 the DuPage Public Safety Communications Center (DUCOMM) received a call from an alarm company reporting an automatic fire alarm activation at 30W200 Ferry Road, the Illinois Youth Center, an Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice detention facility. At 11:40, DUCOMM dispatched Warrenville Fire Companies along with companies from surrounding communities to the scene. Warrenville Assistant Chief 11 arrived within 6 minutes of the initial call and reported heavy smoke showing from the roof of the administration building. Assistant Chief 11 upgraded the call to a Structure Fire response bringing a total of four engines, two ladder trucks, two ambulances, one squad, and four chiefs to the scene. A Youth Center employee on scene reported that there was a fire in the kitchen. Illinois Youth Center employees were evacuating staff and residents when fire companies arrived.

Warrenville Fire companies immediately stretched a charged hose line to the rear entrance to attack the fire. They were met with high heat conditions and zero visibility. As additional companies arrived, they were assigned to assist with ventilation, search and rescue, and water supply. Due to the severity of the fire, the alarm was upgraded to a Fire Box Alarm at 11:52 bringing one additional engine, two more ladder trucks, one squad, one ambulance, and one chief to the scene. A second upgrade to an EMS Box alarm was requested for more ambulances at 12:14 pm. The response was ultimately upgraded to a Fire 2^nd Alarm and an EMS 2^nd Alarm with the last upgrade taking place at 12:41. In total, nine engines, six ladder trucks, two squads, eleven ambulances, and fourteen chief officers assisted in handling this incident.

Due to the extreme heat and humidity, an on scene rehab unit was made available for firefighters operating on scene. The fire was deemed under control at approximately 3:00 pm and fully extinguished at 3:30. Because this is a State of Illinois facility, the Illinois State Fire Marshal’s office of fire investigations was requested along with the DuPage County Fire Investigation Task Force to complete the fire investigation. The cause of the fire is currently under investigation.

One Illinois Youth Center employee was treated for smoke inhalation and transported to Endeavor Health Edward Hospital in Naperville. The patient’s condition is unknown at the time of this release. No firefighters were injured as a result of this fire. The Illinois Youth Center Administration building was deemed to be uninhabitable due to extensive fire damage.

The Warrenville Fire Protection District was assisted on scene by the following agencies during this challenging incident. Naperville, Wheaton, Glen Ellyn, Geneva, Fermilab, Aurora, Bloomingdale, Downers Grove, Argonne, Bolingbrook and Hanover Park Fire Departments and the West Chicago, Lisle Woodridge, North Aurora, Winfield, Carol Stream, and the Darien Woodridge Fire Protection Districts. Warrenville Fire was also assisted by the City of Warrenville Police Department and Building Department as well as NICOR and ComEd utilities. The Batavia Fire Department provided station coverage during the event.