CHICAGO — Firefighters fought an extra-alarm blaze at an old North Lawndale furniture warehouse for hours Wednesday afternoon, officials said.
A tank with an unknown substance ignited in the basement of the multilevel warehouse about noon Wednesday as crews were gutting the building for renovation, said Larry Langford, a Chicago Fire Department spokesman.
The substance might have been glue. The tank of "problem material" was possibly hazardous, and the warehouse had "potential for a major fire," authorities said.
Crews attacked the fire in the building at 1034 S. Kostner Ave. with a foaming agent, and at one point part of the basement's ceiling caught on fire, authorities said.
The fire was struck out about 2:45 p.m., and no one was injured, officials said.