On Tuesday, June 4, 2024, at approximately 8:29 PM, the Lake County Sheriff's Office, Lake Zurich Fire Department, and automatic aid fire departments responded to reports of a house that exploded and was on fire at 23525 North Overhill Drive in unincorporated Lake Zurich, IL. The incident occurred in the Forest Lake subdivision.
Outdoor surveillance camera footage provided to Woo-Sung Shim by homeowner Ulises Hernandez - who lives two houses north of the house that exploded - shows kids and residents in shock after the explosion rocked the neighborhood.
Hernandez quickly went outside to see what happened and called 911. The house was immediately engulfed in flames after the explosion.
Emergency crews responding to the incident saw a smoke column in the sky. Lake Zurich firefighters arrived on scene within six minutes and found the single-story home fully involved in flames, Lake Zurich Fire Chief David Pilgard told Woo-Sung Shim.
"The explosion leveled the house, unfortunately, and damaged two neighboring houses - a house to the north and a house to the south," Pilgard said. A 77-year-old man, who was the sole occupant of the house, was unaccounted for.
Pilgard said firefighters prioritized accounting for the residents of the house that exploded and to check on the neighboring houses.
Firefighters immediately started defensive operations to protect the neighboring houses from fire. "They suffered minimal fire damage. They did suffer some damage from the explosion," Pilgard said. Debris was seen scattered around the area.
Some of the neighbors were inside their houses, while some were outside when the explosion occurred, Pilgard said. All of the neighbors were accounted for and they were not injured.
Lake Zurich FD Battalion 32, who was the incident commander, requested Mutual Aid Box Alarm System (MABAS) Box Alarm #32-2 to the box alarm level at 8:36 PM, which brought fire apparatus from numerous departments, including water tenders, to the scene. The fire was upgraded to the second alarm level at 9:24 PM and ultimately to the third alarm level at 9:38 PM.
Water tenders were requested because the area does not have fire hydrants. Two portable water tanks were set up to establish water supplies, Pilgard said. Firefighters were able to use those portable water supplies to deploy numerous hose lines and fight the fire.
The explosion itself caused damage to a gas meter and natural gas was leaking. Technicians and diggers with Nicor Gas responded to dig into the ground and stop the leak from the gas line.
After the leak was stopped, firefighters fully extinguished the fire at 11:49 PM and started a more in-depth investigation.
In addition to the structure fire box alarm, command requested MABAS Fire Investigation Task Force Box Alarm #32-80 to the second alarm level, bringing in fire investigators from over two dozen fire departments.
In addition to the task force, the Illinois State Fire Marshal, Lake County Sheriff's Office, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives assisted with the investigation.
In total, 14 water tenders, 16 fire engines, 3 ladder trucks, 5 squads, 5 ambulances, and 14 fire chiefs responded to this incident, Pilgard said.
The body of an adult male was later recovered from the rubble. On June 7, 2024, the Lake County Coroner's Office conducted a dental examination and positively identified the body as the 77-year-old homeowner, Timothy Toczylowski.
Tax and property records show Toczylowski has been living in the house as the sole owner since 1999.
The next day, neighbors paid their respects to Toczylowski by placing flowers against the fences surrounding his leveled home.
Ulises Hernandez, who was the homeowner that provided the surveillance video and called 911, told Woo-Sung Shim that he was inside his house when the explosion occurred two houses down.
He immediately looked for his children and went outside. "That's when I heard people screaming and I looked over and the house was caught on fire," Hernandez said.
"It was a definite explosion because the whole house shook," Hernandez said. Hernandez's family was not injured, but there was debris that landed on their roof.
Hernandez said that the owner of the house that exploded, Toczylowski, was a long-time resident. Hernandez called him a "friendly person" and occasionally had interactions with him. "He was a very nice person," Hernandez said.
TIMESTAMPS:
0:00 - Surveillance Footage of Explosion
1:07 - Intro
2:24 - Video of the Scene
18:24 - Interview with Lake Zurich Fire Chief
24:16 - Interview with Neighbor Two Houses Down
26:40 - Flowers Placed 24 Hours Later
27:00 - Photos of the Scene
29:38 - Outro
Audio provided by Broadcastify
Video and Photos by Woo-Sung Shim
Track: Elektronomia - Sky High [NCS Release]
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16 авг 2024
