Area firefighters were on scene for several hours on Sunday after another fire broke out in an abandoned building on the grounds of the former Jacksonville Developmental Center.
The Jacksonville and South Jacksonville Fire Departments both responded to a call of a fire on the JDC grounds at approximately 6:45 Sunday morning after a passerby reported to West Central Joint Dispatchers they could see smoke coming from one of the buildings on the west side of the campus.
Lt. John Stock with the Jacksonville Fire Department said light smoke was showing from a large area on the second floor of the two-story Gillespie building when crews arrived on scene.
Stock says firefighters had trouble gaining access to the building. He says doors were open to access the other wing of the building, however the portion with the fire was locked tight.
A crew made entry via a second-floor window and Lieutenant Stock said they were immediately met with heavy fire and high heat. He says once the second crew gained access, the fire was knocked down and contained within approximately fifteen minutes. He says however that fire had made its way up into the attic and light smoke began showing through a hole near a chimney.
Jacksonville Fire Captain Dan Klendworth says crews were then directed to open holes in the roof to attack the fire from above in an effort to keep firefighters safe and out of the confined space of the attic.
Klendworth says the former Jacksonville Developmental Center grounds pose additional concerns when firefighters need to make entry to one of the many abandoned buildings.
“Sending manpower in here- we worry about the guys going in. This building hasn’t been taken care of for however many years and as we’ve known, [the State of Illinois] has the barricades up so it’s always an issue for us with access getting our trucks to these buildings.
But of course, we have to worry about if there is a vagrant or somebody in there just messing around. We still have to worry about life safety that’s our number one priority. But also our priority is our guys’ safety.
There’s nobody in there now, we’ve searched it and it’s clear. We’re just trying to take care of this so that when people get in there and mess around again, this doesn’t happen and it’s a little bit safer.”
Sunday’s fire was at least the fifth suspicious fire within the last four years on the grounds. The Developmental Center campus has sat dormant since November 2012 after then-Governor Pat Quinn announced the closure of the facility.
Jacksonville Fire Department officials say that the building was unsecured and evidence of trespassing was discovered, including signs of multiple previous fires being set inside the building.
No utility services have been operational since its closure including water, meaning when a fire breaks out in one of the buildings, water must be brought in by a water tender or large hoses must be run to hydrants off the property.
Captain Klendworth says the continued problems with the JDC grounds have become a frustration for area first responders as well as a life, health, and safety hazards and he hopes something can be done with the state-owned property to alleviate the issues.
“Unfortunately, you know, on our end we’d like the state to do something with this or us to do something with this. I know Community Development has been working on that with the state and our representatives as much as we can. There’s only so much we can do on our end. We’re getting this [fire] taken care of and keep it safe. So we’re going to keep doing what we do, but we need somebody else to do something about this place honestly.”
Legislation filed by 99th District State Representative Randy Frese last year to remediate and demolish buildings on the JDC grounds failed to pass out of committee in the General Assembly. The bill estimated the costs needed to remove asbestos and get demolition going at more than $67 million.
A surplus property bill by State Senator Steve McClure that was passed and signed by Governor J.B. Pritzker in 2021 has also not brought any movement from the state.
Fire crews were on scene just over 5 hours to ensure the fire was out. No injuries were reported. The State Fire Marshal’s Office has been called in to investigate the cause of the blaze.
The South Jacksonville Fire Department addressed a post to Governor J.B. Pritzker yesterday imploring the state government to do something with the buildings before someone gets seriously injured.