Richmond home left uninhabitable

Firefighters work to put out a fire that broke out in a Richmond home around noon Monday. (Photo courtesy of Katherine Horner)

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RICHMOND – No one was injured, but a home was left uninhabitable after a fire Monday morning.

Crews arrived at 10102 Main St., Richmond, a block north of Nippersink Middle School, at 11:35 a.m. after a passerby reported smoke coming from the electrical meters, Richmond Fire Protection District Chief Rick Gallas said.

The fire was put out within about 20 minutes, but firefighters were on the scene until a little after 1 p.m. checking to make sure the fire was not inside the walls.

“No one was home at the time, so we’re lucky that passerby noticed the smoke,” Gallas said.

The home, which was divided into three occupied rental units, was not a total loss but had significant enough damage that it could not be lived in, Gallas said. The main floor mostly had smoke and water damage, but the upper level significantly was damaged when the fire traveled up the side of the house.

Tarps covered parts of the home where the exterior was burned through or broken away by firefighters.

Aside from Richmond, crews from at least seven area departments responded, including Wonder Lake, Spring Grove, Hebron, McHenry, Bloomfield, Wis.; Salem, Wis.; and Twin Lakes, Wis.

Crews from Crystal Lake and Antioch also responded to the Richmond Fire Station to help.

Main Street, also known as Route 12, was closed from Hill Road to Route 173 for more than an hour while crews worked on the scene.

The cause of the fire remained under investigation Monday night.