A 52-year-old man was seriously burned Monday in an explosion in his garage that apparently blew him through a wall as he was working to repair a vehicle.
The resulting fire destroyed two cars, two racing boats, two or three motorcycles, two auto or racing boat engines, and the garage itself, said Fire Chief Bruce Rodewald. He said it was the biggest garage fire he had ever seen.
The injured man, Paul Palm, who lived at the scene of the blast, 806 S. Cleveland Ave., was found ablaze in the back yard, Rodewald said.
The injured man’s 20-year-old son rolled the father in the snow to extinguish the flames, Rodewald said. The elder Palm was taken to Northwest Community Hospital, Arlington Heights, and then transferred to Loyola University Medical Center, Maywood.
A Loyola spokeswoman said he was burned over 30 percent of his body and was in serious condition.
Most of the burns were on his face, hands, and arms, said a spokesman for Northwest Community Hospital.
Palm was working on the gas gauge of a Lincoln Town Car, which involved opening the car’s fuel line in some way, when gasoline fumes apparently were ignited by a space heater in the garage about 11:15 a.m., according to the fire and police departments.
Just outside the garage were two racing boats and a Corvette, all with fiberglass bodies, and all were destroyed, Rodewald said.
Police Lt. Michael Ossler said the man may have been a mechanic doing work for others. Rodewald said the family told the Fire Department that Palm was a racing boat enthusiast. Rodewald added that operating a repair garage in a residential neighborhood would violate the zoning law there.