Probe into cause of Moore Tires fire underway

ROCK FALLS – Firefighters on Tuesday afternoon still were monitoring the scene of a fire that broke out early that morning and totaled the 70,000-square-foot Moore Tires shop at 2411 E. Rock Falls Road/U.S. Route 30.

According to a news release, Rock Falls Acting Fire Chief Ken Wolf said it appears the fire began in the first-floor shop area; its cause is under investigation by the State Fire Marshal, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Sterling and Rock Falls fire departments, and the Whiteside County Sheriff’s Office.

About 90% of the building was affected, according to the release.

No one was injured.

The call came in about 4:25 a.m. Tuesday, and about 20 or so agencies responded at some point, many bringing tenders, Rock Falls Fire Capt. Matt Kobbeman said.

When firefighters arrived, heavy smoke was coming from the shop area and fire quickly spread throughout the building, leading to the partial collapse of the south and west walls, according to the release, adding that fire crews still were on scene Tuesday afternoon hitting any hot spots.

About 6:30 a.m. Tuesday, the department called for an excavator to help put out the flames, which get trapped under falling sheet metal from the walls and roof and become difficult to put out unless they are exposed, Kobbeman said.

Also, Wolf called in the Illinois Emergency Management Agency and the EPA, and representatives arrived to monitor the chemicals in the water runoff and in the air, and they came away with “no major concerns,” Wolf said.

As dawn broke, clouds of thick black smoke could be seen roiling above the building.

About 7 a.m., Moore posted this on its Facebook page:

“There’s been a devastating fire at our Rock Falls location early this morning. We are so thankful all employees are safe. While we figure out next steps for our business, please know our Dixon location is fully operational ... Please keep our incredible first responders in your thoughts and prayers this morning.”

According to Whiteside County property tax records, the building was worth $409,000. That’s not including all the equipment and trucks that were inside at the time.

John Witherow, owner of the nearby Skybox Sports Bar at 1118 E. Rock Falls Road, immediately offered the bar as a place for firefighters to rest and warm up.

They needed it: At 4:30 a.m., the temperature was 4 below, with a wind chill factor of -20 to -25, and it didn’t improve – in fact, it was even colder by 9 a.m., with a temp of minus 8 and a wind chill of 30 below, according to the National Weather Service in the Quad Cities, which gets its info from the Whiteside County Airport in Rock Falls.

It never got warmer than about 1 degree all day, with a wind chill of minus 25.

This is the biggest fire Rock Falls has seen in years. On Dec. 28, 2006, the abandoned Reliant Fastener company downtown, closed since 2002, burned to the ground in a fire that started around 5 p.m. Fourteen fire departments responded.

Moore’s Rock Falls location was the company’s original site, opened in 1991 by owner Jeff Moore and his wife, Angie.

The first shop had only two bays, and the Moores lived in an apartment above the garage, according to the Moore website.

They have since expanded the building to nine bays and the Moores no longer live on site.

In addition to tire sales, Moore does oil changes, brake and suspension work.

Its newest location, in the former Plaza Cinemas, 1315 N. Galena Ave. in Dixon, opened Feb. 28, 2022, and the family owned business also has locations in Mendota, Kewanee, Monmouth and Macomb.