Lightning Strike Destroys Crystal Lake Home

Huntley Fire Department was one of seven departments helping  respond to a structural fire at 3:42 p.m. March 20 at 5914 Marietta Drive in unincorporated Crystal Lake. 

The fire was caused by a lightning strike to the two-car garage of a single-family home. Flames accelerated into the two-story wood-frame house when propane tanks and a small amount of ammunition stored in the garage were set off by the fire, said Deputy Chief Paul DeRaedt. 

The homeowner, an elderly man, heard the smoke alarms go off and fled the home with his dog, leaving the front door open. DeRaedt said that also contributed to the quick consumption of the home. 

Within five minutes of dispatch, water was being dumped on the home by the department’s water tenders. The fire was so intense that firefighters were forced to battle flames only from the outside of the house. 

The nearest water hydrant was at Route 176 just west of Route 31—about a half-mile from the scene, DeRaedt said. Driving to and from the scene to refill the tenders impeded firefighters’ efforts to squelch the flames. 

“It was just too much fire for the amount of water we had,” DeRaedt said. “We threw 1,500 gallons of water on it in the first couple of minutes and then after that we had a tender come in from Cary Fire Department with 3,000 gallons of water.” 

Additional mutual aid companies were asked to send water tenders which allowed a continual flow of water to be applied to the flames. The fire was under control at 5:32 p.m. 

The homeowner and his dog were not injured and found shelter with family members. The McHenry County Planning and Development Department determined the house was a complete loss with estimated losses of over $200,000. 

“It burned up to the point the structure was very unstable and we had called in through the insurance company to bring in a back hoe to push the house into the foundation,” DeRaedt said. 

Heat damage was caused to the vinyl siding of a neighbor's garage on the north side of the property. 

Barrington, Huntley, Lakewood, Cary, Woodstock, McHenry and Wauconda fire departments assisted at the scene.