Winnetka Firefighters Investigating Fire on Bryant

Winnetka Fire Department responded to a structure fire in the 800 block of Bryant Avenue on Thursday morning. No one was injured in the fire. 

The fire was mostly in the back of a house under construction at 807 Bryant Avenue and did not affect nearby homes, according to Winnetka Fire Chief Alan Berkowsky. 

“The house from the front actually does not look like there was a problem but all the fire was at the back of the house,” Berkowsky said. “When we got there we found heavy fire and smoke coming from the rear of the house on the first floor.” 

The fire originated in the basement of the house. When firefighters responded to the call at 3:40 a.m. they had to use a pike pole to test the floors because fire had burnt through the first floor and reached the northwest corner of the second floor. 

Firefighters from 11 communities responded and helped put the fire out at 5 a.m. 

As of 9:30 a.m. firefighters are still on the scene searching for hot spots and investigating the cause of the fire. 

A water plant operator smelled smoke and called the fire department early Thursday morning. Winnetka police also responded to the call and was able to locate the fire before the firefighters arrived. 

“The firefighters made a very aggressive attack and were able to contain the fire to the structure of origin,” Berkowsky said.

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