Something continues to burn in Peru, IL

Peru factory fire may burn into next week By Robert McCoppin -- Tribune reporter | January 2, 2012

A New Year’s Eve fire at a huge former clock factory in Peru, Ill., may continue burning into next week, but is under control, officials said Monday.

The blaze destroyed the middle of three sections in the massive former Westclox factory, but the other two sections were saved, Peru Police Chief Doug Bernabei said. Homes around the site were evacuated, and 28 people were sheltered overnight, but have since returned to their homes, the chief said.

Two teens were charged with aggravated arson: Steven Gallacher, 17, of LaSalle, and a 15-year-old boy from Peru whose name was not released. A 26-year-old firefighter suffered a broken thigh and was hospitalized in stable condition, the chief said.

Thirty fire departments and 16 police departments responded to the blaze, which may have been the largest in the history of the city, 60 miles west of Joliet, Bernabei said. To protect firefighters, they attacked the blaze primarily from the outside Monday, using two aerial hoses.

“It’s amazing they didn’t lose the whole complex and there was no loss of life,” the chief said

. The 44-building structure first underwent construction in 1910 and was eligible for the National Registry of Historic Places. It has undergone redevelopment as the Peru Trade Center and housed a recycling business that was destroyed, Bernabei said, and numerous businesses in the adjoining buildings that were spared.

rmccoppin@tribune.com