Urbana, IL – Sprinkler system activated for fire at apartment complex; No injuries reported

A fire just before 4 p.m. on Halloween left two apartments in Urbana uninhabitable.

The Urbana Fire Department responded to a fire alarm at an apartment complex on Lincoln Avenue at 3:55 p.m. on Oct. 31. Initially, three engines, one ladder and one command officer were dispatched.

When the crews arrived, there was no sign of fire coming from the building, but after investigating, crews found water coming from an apartment.

The crews forced the apartment door open and found it was full of smoke. While the fire did damage the stove, microwave and cabinets, it was kept from spreading throughout the unit by the sprinkler system.

More firefighters were dispatched to the scene and crews were able to extinguish the fire within 10 minutes. The apartment residents were not home at the time of the fire, and no injuries were reported from responding crews or other residents living in the apartment complex.

The residents living in the apartment that experienced the fire, and the apartment directly below were told that their residences were not inhabitable at this time.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation and damage estimates have not been determined at this time.