Night Fire Destroys Garage on Batavia's West Side

A detached garage was leveled and another was partially damaged in a fire early this morning in unincorporated Batavia.

The fire occurred on a family's property on the 1100 block of Woodland Avenue, west of the Fox River and Fox River Trail. Fire crews were dispatched to the scene at about 4:20 a.m. this morning (Wednesday, April 11), said Randy Deicke, Batavia Fire Chief.

Firefighters arrived to find the garage fully engulfed. The garage didn't hold any cars, but the owner told investigators that he did have one or two cans of gasoline in the garage.

"Our main priority was to prevent the exposure," Deicke said.

The fire did not spread to the home, which included three children. The family was alerted by police who knocked on their door, said Mary Lynn Ross, a resident who lives three houses away from the fire site.

The garage was behind and directly west of a house that faces east towards the river. The house is one of several that line Woodland Avenue.

Another detached garage to the north of the fire site also sustained some damage but will be salvageable, Deicke said.

Investigators early this morning were still trying to determine the cause of the fire.