By Tess Kenny | [email protected] | Chicago Tribune
PUBLISHED: July 15, 2024 at 3:12 PM CDT | UPDATED: July 16, 2024 at 5:13 PM CDT
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A two-alarm fire Monday caused $1.1 million in damage to the Illinois Youth Center-Warrenville in unincorporated Naperville and forced the relocation of 38 residents, the Warrenville Fire Protection District chief said.
About 65% of the main administration building at 30W200 Ferry Road, owned and operated by the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice, was destroyed by the blaze, which was reported about 11:40 a.m. and not completely extinguished until 3:30 p.m., said Chief Andrew Dina, who described the fire as “severe.”
It’s believed it started in the kitchen and was discovered by a youth center employee, according to Dina and Dominique Newman, a spokeswoman for the juvenile justice department.
The center’s main administration building is uninhabitable, Dina said. “(The residents) cannot return to the building,” he said.
In addition to more than three dozen youth residents, who have been moved to housing available at other sites, about 30 staff members also were at the building when the fire broke out, Newman said.
One staff member required treatment for smoke inhalation at Edward Hospital’s emergency room in Naperville but all other employees and residents were safely evacuated and no other injuries were reported.
Dina said it is too early to say whether the fire was accidental or intentional. Because the center is state property, the Illinois State Fire Marshal’s Office will be the lead investigator, working with the DuPage County Arson Investigation Task Force, he said.
Determining the fire’s cause will take at least a couple of days, Dina said.
The first firefighters to arrive at the scene reported heavy smoke coming from the adminstration building roof, and alarms were upgraded twice to bring in a total of nine engines, six ladder trucks, two squads, 11 ambulances and 14 chief officers, the fire district news release said. Sixteen fire departments assisted at the scene, including those from Fermilab in Batavia and Argonne National Laboratory in Lemont.
Because of the heat and humidity, an on-scene rehab unit was brought in to help firefighters deal with the conditions, the release said.
The Ferry Road facility opened in 1973 and is one of five youth secure facilities operated by the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice across the state, according to the agency’s website.
“IYC-Warrenville serves juvenile female and male populations with multiservice needs,” website information said. “The center provides GED and high school diploma academic services, an in-patient substance abuse treatment program, vocational programs, mental health services, medical services, clinical services, leisure time activities, parenting education, assessments and family reunification programming.”
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