UPDATED 2/26/2020
Two roofing companies experienced fires at their Illinois facilities on Feb. 21, causing substantial damage at both locations.
According to the Quad-City Times, the East Moline Fire Department responded to a fire that started on the eastern side of a large warehouse belonging to Atlas Roofing in the East Moline Industrial Park in Illinois.
Fire departments started receiving calls around 11:46 a.m. on Feb. 21. East Moline Fire Department Lt. Greg Elden began his investigation around 2:40 p.m. Elden said it looked to mainly be property and equipment damage and possibly water and smoke damage. No injuries were reported.
“At this time, all we know is we had a structure fire inside Atlas Roofing,” Elden told the Quad-City Times. “We had several companies come down, including Silvis, Rock Island Arsenal and Moline to help us out. At this time, the fire is out. No loss of life, no injuries, or anything like that.”
Atlas Roofing has more than 35 facilities located across the country.
About 100 miles east of the Atlas Roofing facility, firefighter battled another blaze at a building belonging to a roofing contractor. NBC-affiliated WREX reported that a fire destroyed the building belonging to Standard Roofing Company in DeKalb, Ill. around 7 p.m. on Feb. 21.
Officials said they found a rapidly-growing fire coming from the roof of the building. The DeKalb Fire Department, along with eight others, worked three hours to put out the blaze. The building was deemed a total loss with roughly $900,000 in damages. Standard Roofing Company has been in business since 1961.
The Daily Chronicle reports that DeKalb firefighters have returned to the building several days later to fight hot spots. According to DeKalb Fire Chief Jeff McMaster, there are areas of the building that his crews can't get into that their hoses can't reach. The building has been declared too dangerous to enter, even for firefighters, which causes the hot spots to reignite.
Firefighters have also had to contend with fallen power lines in addition to the combustible materials and flammable liquids housed inside the structure. The only remains of the building are its four outer walls, which will likely collapse or be razed, said McMaster.
No one was hurt from the fire, and there is currently no word on what caused it.