House Fire in Effingham Over the Weekend

Fire did major damage to a home in Effingham overnight Friday night.

The call came at 11:12pm to 1000 W. St. Anthony Avenue. The homeowner and her son were at home at the time of the fire. They phoned 911, then tried fighting the fire using buckets of water. Both exited the house when the smoke got too heavy and they couldn't breathe. Both were taken to HSHS St. Anthony's Memorial Hospital in Effingham, where they were treated, then released.

Effingham Fire Department called a full still, bringing the Shumway and Teutopolis departments to the scene. Assistant Fire Chief Matt Kulesza said the crews made an aggressive exterior, then interior attack on three sides of the house. Kulesza said smoke and fire conditions kept getting worse, so he called a box alarm that brought in seven additional fire companies. 

The fire was brought under control within two hours, then crews put out remaining hot spots. Kulesza said the older home with multiple additions over the years made it tough to address all of the areas involved. 

A total of 39 firefighters were on scene. Companies involved were Effingham, Shumway, Teutopolis, Tri-County, Watson, Stewardson, Greenup, with Olney and Edgewood on hand to staff the Effingham stations in case of another call. Also assisting were Rural Med Ambulance Service, Effingham City Police Department, Effingham city public works, and Ameren gas and electric.

An investigation of the fire scene indicated that a burning candle was on a table. The glass around the candle broke, and paperwork and the window curtains caught fire. The dollar value of the damage is still being evaluated. 

All units had cleared the scene by 5am Saturday.