Fire guts apartment building

Wheaton families homeless; lightning suspected in blaze

Photo by Daily Herald Photographer Bev Horne

By James Fuller


Jared Standridge was sitting in his living room with his dog Arwen when he heard a crash of thunder and saw a bright flash followed by a “zapping” sound.

“Then everybody was running around, banging on doors,” Standridge said. “I think everybody got out fine, but I don’t know.”

The immediate aftermath of a fire that consumed a 24-unit apartment building in Wheaton Monday afternoon was confusion and concern.

Some residents toted their dogs and cats around, nuzzling them with a newfound appreciation. Others bawled with the apparent loss of irreplaceable photo albums and other belongings.


Photo by Daily Herald Photographer Bev Horne

The fire began shortly before an alarm went off in the building at about 3:30 p.m. Heavy rain and gusting winds pounded the Amli at Danada Farms apartment complex just before the alarm, leading both fire officials and witnesses to speculate that lightning may be to blame.

“I saw it kind of smoldering and the fire department got there and it was almost like they didn’t have to call anybody else,” said Rick Schweihs, who lives in a neighboring building. “Then all of sudden flames were shooting up.”

Some 30 fire departments and about 100 firefighters responded to the alarm. Smoke and flames began to dissipate an hour into the fight, but the damage was evident. Nearly the entire roof collapsed, leaving only a series of thin strips of the once-vaulted ceilings grasping at the sky like the teeth of a rake.

Residents of the complex said there were no sprinklers in the building, but a fire alarm system was in place that signals the fire department when triggered by smoke or flames.

In the end, fire officials confirmed everyone made it out of the building without injury. By 6:15 p.m., only a few hot spots remained as firefighters walked the interior of the now uninhabitable building.

Red Cross personnel arrived at the scene in the late afternoon to help the newly homeless residents find temporary shelter. Property managers declined comment.

Wheaton Fire Chief Greg Berk said it was too soon to know the cause of the fire for sure, but fire officials were interviewing witnesses who saw lightning just before the blaze erupted. Berk said the Wheaton Fire Department also received several calls about lightning strikes in the area before the Amli fire alarm sounded.