Family Escapes Injury in Highland Park Fire

The scent of smoke may have saved a Highland Park family Saturday when they noticed the smell and fled their Hawthorne Lane home before it was gutted by fire, according to Highland Park Fire Chief Pat Tanner today.

“They (the family) were home, smelled smoke and left right away,” Tanner said. “No one was hurt, not the family or any of the firefighters. The house is a total loss.”

Though Tanner is still taking a look at all the circumstances, he was able to rule out foul play. “This was a non suspicious fire,” he said. “We’re still gathering all the information.” It may be several days before he pieces it all together.

Before firefighters from Highland Park and at least 10 other nearby communities extinguished the blaze, flames were escaping from at least two spots on the roof as they faced a unique challenge.

The house is located at the end of a street with no outlet and backs up to a ravine on the south. While the firefighters were working, a water main broke making their task that much harder, according to Tanner.

“We used 1,500 feet of four-inch hose,” Tanner said. “One went out to (a water source on) Ravine (Drive) past Forest (Avenue) and the other went through the back to Sheridan (Road) and Forest.”

The home at 1540 Hawthorne Lane was sold in October for $1,224,500, according to information on the multiple listing service.

Firefighters from Highwood, Deerfield Bannockburn Fire Protection District, Northbrook, Glencoe, Northfield, Wilmette, Libertyville, Skokie, Knollwood and Prospect Heights were observed on the scene.

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