Chicago area AS dealership fire.

[klattu]

The Fridge tye in was very appropriate...
Is the hot topic this year, and could be very true.
Serious with humor is good to make us all go take a look at our own fridges, fire safety issues and insurance.

[knunut]

Last night T.V. News showed RV Dealer Fire at the Bolingbrook (Chgo) Dealer.They shared a building with a truck repair center,it appears the fire started there and destroyed the entire complex.
All the people were able to escape.The video look's really bad.Plus the trailers in the showroom had propane tanks on them which exploded.
I hope that they will rebuild in the area and continue to provide the excellent service that they did.
Will report more as soon as possible.

[InsideOut]

I've merged duplicate threads...

Shari

[Caryl]

The Chicago RV Dealer fire yesterday did destroy our Base Camp. Basically the dealership and all Airstreams in the showroom, service shop and next to the building were destroyed. The only thing left is melted aluminum and some steel. Our Base Camp was in for service and, well, I guess it doesn't need service any more. Basically, the trailers and the building appear vaporized.

I couldn't find the thread on this fire, so if the moderator would like to attach this note to that thread, please do so.

Jerry, my husband, took some shots there today. The management is figuring out things with the insurance company and stated that they will rebuild and expect to be comparable to their Davenport Iowa facility.

This shot is what is left of the Base Camp. several of you asked for pictures and unfortunately, this is all I have:

[Stefrobrts]

I merged your new thread onto the fire thread. I'm really sorry to hear you lost your new base camp. Not much left of it! I hope they get you set up with a new one before you miss too much of camping season!

[Caryl]

Here are some other pictures of the fire. The truck was one of the company tow vehicles. The rest show what's left of the building. Looks like everything vaporized except steel. Jerry brought home an ingot of aluminum about 2" by 6". Maybe that was a Bambi???

[Caryl]

Originally Posted by Stefrobrts

I merged your new thread onto the fire thread. I'm really sorry to hear you lost your new base camp. Not much left of it! I hope they get you set up with a new one before you miss too much of camping season!

I am sure we will be back and going soon enough. Although I loved the Base Camp and we were just getting going, we will move forward and build new friends and memories.

thanks,
Caryl

[Mel]

Originally Posted by Caryl

we will move forward and build new friends and memories.

Glad to hear it, and so sorry about your Base Camp!

[JerryMcMunn]

This is Jerry, Caryl's husband.

As you may know, I visited the Airstream of Chicago fire site and photographed it today. I was delighted to confirm that all the fine employees got out without injury and that the owners told them they did not need to look for new jobs as the they intended to reopen in the area and to do so in a larger facility.

This is good news for all Chicagoland Airstream owners and the employees. Having been pleased with their sales and service, we certainly plan to support the dealership and hope others in the area do the same.

As for my personal observations of the fire site, it was very interesting to see how little was left of the affected units. It appeared to me that esentially all of the plastic, fiberglass, rubber and aluminum components of all the RV's, regardless of maker, vaporized in the high heat, i.e. transformed from solid to gasseous states, and apparently blew away in the high winds of the time. Perhaps the molecules of our BaseCamp are circling the earth by now, not sure. One thing for sure, however, we're not going camping in our BaseCamp this weekend!! ;-(

At this point we understand that our personal loss is fully covered by insurance. If this is correct, we hope to be happy AS owners again in the near future. In the meantime, with your approval, we will continue to contribute to the AS forum and continue to enjoy your company.

Regards,

Jerry

[lilmouse]

Condolences on the Base Camp.
I was at that a/s dealership maybe a couple of months ago.
I live maybe 30 minutes north from that dealer, it's roughly a mile from Camping World.

My husband works for Coffman Truck Sales in Aurora, he's in the parts department. Husband had mentioned that the drivers make deliveries there at that truck place next to the a/s. Sad news about the fire. We were just talking about it after dinner.
On the day I had stoppped in there (just to see the shiny pretty trailers) I had wandered around the showroom for about 10 or 15 minutes. No one was around. I did go into all the trailers although the BaseCamp model that was outside was locked. I'm sure it's a very cool trailer, I hope you can get a replacement soon.

I was at the other a/s dealer that's way south from where I'm at. We took a trip to find parts and look to see what trailers were for sale. What a waste of a trip, got no help. I was overjoyed when I discovered the Bolingbrook dealer.
I hope the Bolingbrook dealer is able to rebuild and recover from the loss. Bad time for business I suppose. Summer is just starting.

[Stefrobrts]

I heard on the news that the fire actually started in a neighboring business. Is that still what they're thinking?

[davidz71]

It is so sad that this would occur right before a holiday. I'm sure some were planning on picking up their trailers in preparation for a Memorial Day vacation. I'm curious, if the fire started in an adjacent business, would that business be responsible for all damages incurred to the Airstream dealership and the trailers destroyed/damaged?

[Caryl]

This is what Jerry and I were told and what we got from the news reports:

The fire started in a diesel truck repair business which was housed in the same building. The cause is still unknown. There were large propane tanks in the Airstream service bays in addition to the propane tanks on the trailers themselves. Those tanks exploded. One tank shot up in the air and landed a quarter mile away. In addition to the propane, high winds added addition fury. The fire took about 30 minutes to completely destroy both businesses.

Caryl

[Goin camping]

Do you know when the insurance etc. will end and you'll have your new Basecamp?

[CanoeStream]

Is anybody saying yet how fast you can get a new Basecamp? Caryl, karmic balance should suggest that your knee replacement will go great.

[Caryl]

We have just begun the process with our insurance agent to understand how to proceed. I think it can go rather quickly--but one never knows what one will run into as these things develop, does one? Airstream can deliver a Base Camp fairly quickly, but we will need to understand who is paying what first. There are several businesses involved--Airstream, the truck repair shop and the owner of the building. By the way, there are four other AS owners with vaporized units as well.

Luckily, I had cancelled all our summer trips because I moved the date of my knee replacement to the end of May instead of later in the summer. Couldn't take the pain anymore. So that was a blessing in disguise. Jerry is taking care of the insurance part and I will be focusing on surgery and rehab. When we understand the dollars we have available and my condition after surgery, we will figure out what we will do. Replacing and knee and a trailer all in the same month--what a concept!

Caryl

[davidz71]

Caryl,
If it were me, I wouldn't accept anything short of an identical Base Camp as replacement. Insurance works in funny ways but that is the way I would feel.

[Goin camping]

Usually your insurance will pay the claim and then collect from the dealership truck repairplace or both.

If you have replacement insurance you should have your new basecamp pretty quickly.

[mjaw]

My 2003 22ft. CCD International was a casualty as well. All that was left were the bathrom and kitchen sinks and the oven.





The Avatar was when it was healthier. It was even picked as a "photo of the month" for the Airstream Website.

[southfla]

We just returned home after picking up our new 16' Bambi in Bolingbrook last week. Imagine our shock and sadness when we called Airstream of Chicago with a few minor questions. We spent Monday (5/21) at the showroom (with our dogs) going over our unit and admiring their inventory. The showroom was full of new Airstreams, and the workbay area was full of Airstreams and other RV's in for service. Everyone was very helpful and patient with us. Some of the employees even came in early Tuesday morning so we could get hooked up and hit the road early. Our Bambi was parked in the bay beside the Basecamp... This is really unbelievable. We are glad to hear that everyone is o.k. and that they will reopen and be bigger and better than before.