The fire about 6:30 p.m. Saturday at the Walmart at 2897 Veterans Memorial Parkway created a lot of smoke but injured no one.
When firefighters arrived, they found that the conflagration was confined to a rack of clothes in the men’s department, said Mike Grzyb, the St. Charles deputy fire chief. The flames were quickly extinguished by a combination of the sprinkler system and firefighters, he said.
Surveillance footage from the inside of the store showed a child, a boy less than 10 years old, hiding inside the circular clothing rack shortly before it caught fire, St. Charles Police Lt. Tom Wilkison said Sunday.
The child left the store with his mother shortly after the fire began, Wilkison said. Police had not yet identified or located the child, he said.
The investigation will be referred to St. Charles County juvenile services once complete, Wilkison said.
The store sustained extensive smoke damage and moderate water damage from the sprinklers, Grzyb said. Firefighters removed skylights to help clear out the smoke.
