Garage destroyed by fire in rural Polo

POLO — Firefighters from several departments responded to a garage fire at 6727 W. Henry Road, southeast of Polo, around 5 p.m. Wednesday, March 26.

At least one vehicle and a camper along with several items were lost in the garage fire. No injuries were reported.

“We received the call at about 4:50 p.m.,” Polo Fire Chief Jim Ports said. “A Jeep and a camper as well as all the other contents in the garage were lost.”

Ports said a building located alongside the garage suffered some fire damage.

“The shed right next to it had the insulation on fire, but we were able to knock that down,” he said.

Fire crews were also able to prevent the flames from spreading into the grass and field located to the east of the garage within several yards of a stand of trees.

“We were lucky,” Ports said. “Mt. Morris was right outside our district on another call and were cleaning up so they were able to get to the scene quickly to help.”

Ports thanked all the area crews that helped, including Mt. Morris, Sterling, Forreston, Oregon, Dixon Rural, EMS Advance, Milledgeville, Chadwick, Dixon City, and Franklin Grove.

“I want to thank all the neighboring departments who responded with us,” Ports said. “We appreciate it.”

The cause of the fire remains undetermined.

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Firefighters look for hot spots following a garage fire at 6727 W. Henry Road, southeast of Polo, on Wednesday, March 26, 2025. Several departments responded to the fire at the rural residence. (Earleen Hinton)