Several garages damaged by fire in Lincoln Park, Chicago fire officials say

CHICAGO (WLS) -- An investigation is underway after a series of garage fires in Lincoln Park Wednesday morning, the Chicago police and fire departments said.

The Chicago Fire Department said six garages were on fire in the 2000 block of North Fremont Street. Some garages on Dayton Street were also impacted, along with multiple vehicles and everything else inside.

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One woman said her son woke her up saying the sky was orange.

Other neighbors said they also woke up to the roar of fire.

"I woke up to the crackling sounds of a fire," Mark Hoffman, whose garage was destroyed, said. "The fire was intense I was standing at the back door of my bedroom and the heat was intense."

In the daylight, the extent of the damage was revealed. The roof of one garage entirely collapsed and a car inside was charred beyond recognition.

Hoffman took video of the flames when it began around 3:15 a.m. He said he grabbed his fire extinguisher to protect his garage as best he could, but the fire that spread to six garages was relentless. His was badly damaged and parts of his car that was parked inside melted.

"I saw it wasn't at my garage so I wasn't as worried at the time, but then it did jump to my garage," Hoffman said. "You can see the car and the garage and just clean up... but they have a lot worse than I did."

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Fire crews had to use saws to cut through some of the garage doors to access them and put out the flames.

Pieces of debris were scattered across the alleyway. Crews worked all morning to restore power lines that were brought down as garages on both sides of the alley were impacted.

Some of Hoffman's neighbors are dealing with significant damage as one woman told ABC7 that she had to take her neighbor's car to work.

Thankfully, no one was hurt and fire crews were able to stop the fire from spreading to any homes.

"Nobody got hurt, the houses were sparred," Hoffman said. "The fire department showed up on time, and I'm sure everyone in this neighborhood has insurance."

Meanwhile, the exact cause of the fire is still under investigation.