Firefighters and volunteers rushed to save at least 30 cats on Sunday night after a fire broke out at Cat Guardians, an all-volunteer-run nonprofit shelter on the 900 block of East St. Charles Road in Lombard. Several people were seen carrying kennels out of the building and loading them into vehicles as crews worked to bring the flames under control.
The Lombard Fire Department responded to the reported fire at the shelter, according to CBS Chicago. The fire broke out along East St. Charles Road near North Westmore Avenue, as reported by nbcchicago.com, and was under control as of about 10 p.m. Sunday, according to a village of Lombard spokesperson.
Fire officials advised the public to avoid the area while the response was underway, and the Lombard Police Department assisted with traffic control near the scene. People at the scene did not know the total number of cats inside the shelter, though most of the cats were believed to have been accounted for by those on site. Officials had not yet determined a final number, the same NBC Chicago report notes.
An All-Volunteer Shelter Caught Off Guard
Cat Guardians operates entirely on volunteer labor, making Sunday night's scramble to move kennels out of the building especially chaotic, with several people carrying crates by hand and loading them into cars parked along East St. Charles Road. No information on the cause of the fire, any injuries, or the condition of the shelter building has been released.
It's not the first time an Illinois animal shelter has had to evacuate animals from a fire. In January 2024, a blaze at PAWS Tinley Park led firefighters and volunteers to rescue 55 cats and 42 dogs, who were then taken to Midwest Animal Hospital for observation, per ABC7 Chicago. A separate fire that started in the laundry room of the People's Animal Welfare Society shelter near Orland Park also prompted a large-scale animal rescue effort, according to an account from NVA General Practice.
What's Still Unknown
As of Sunday night, the exact total of cats that were inside Cat Guardians when the fire broke out remained unclear, and officials had not finalized how many were ultimately rescued. No details have been released about what sparked the fire, whether any cats, firefighters, or shelter workers were hurt, or where the rescued cats are now being housed. Residents were asked to steer clear of the area while emergency crews continued to work at the scene.
