No one was injured in a Murrayville structure fire Thursday afternoon.
The Murrayville Fire Department was called to a structure fire at 202 West Alley B at approximately 1:10 pm Thursday.
Fire Chief John Sonneborn says one person was home at the time when the fire call came in.
“The initial page came out that a person was still in the house. Upon our arrival, law enforcement advised us that the individual had made it out. It appears to have been electrical in nature and started in the kitchen area of the home. We kept the fire contained to that area, but I believe due to the smoke and water and the age of the residence it is probably a total loss. It was the old Murrayville Diner.
Woodson, Murrayville, and South Jacksonville crews all came down, as well as Murrayville-Woodson EMS. We were there for between three and four hours.”
Sonneborn says when crews arrived on scene, the resident was outside with law enforcement, however, she has smoke soot on her face and lips from exposure inside the home. He says he believes she was attempting to rescue her two cats which unfortunately perished in the fire, likely due to smoke inhalation.
Sonneborn says the fire appears to have been caused by an electrical issue in the home, and no further investigation is ongoing at this time.