Early morning fire destroys garage

A faulty space heater is the likely cause of a fire that broke out in a garage early Tuesday morning.
Coal City Fire Protection District personnel were called to the 400 block of South Mazon Street at 12:51 a.m. when a passerby notified authorities of a fire in a detached garage in the alley behind a residence near the intersection of Mazon and Center streets.
Fire units were on the scene in minutes and the fire was under control within 15 minutes of the initial call out.
Lt. Nick Doerfler, Coal City Fire’s public information officer, reported the garage was a total loss resulting in $50,000 damage.
Although the initial cause points to the use of a space heater, the fire remains under investigation.
Fire crews were on scene until about 3:30 a.m. Assisting at the scene were units from Braidwood, Wilmington and Morris, and Coal City Emergency Management Agency. Manning the fire station were units from Gardner, Seneca, Dwight and a Morris ambulance.