Breathtaking Photos of Massive Chemtool Fire from Rockton, Illinois Residents

On Monday, around 7 a.m., a Rockton chemical plant burst into flames. These photos from those that live nearby will make you feel like you were right there.

For most of us, learning of the fire at Chemtool Incorporated at 1165 Prairie Hill Road in Rockton, Illinois, began as just thinking that the early morning storm clouds looked rather peculiar.

Moments after wondering why the sky looked so strange, I saw a Facebook live video from a Rockford television crew who was on the scene of the 4-alarm fire at the plant.

The first call we took after we mentioned the fire on the show, came from one of the roughly 70 Chemtool employees who was on her way home. She shared that to the best of her knowledge, all employees got out safely and none were hurt.

What a blessing it is, that no one was hurt. When you see some of these photos of this massive fire, it is really amazing knowing that everyone got out.

During the first press conference, a few hours after the fire broke out, the Rockton Fire Department announced that fire suppression tactics were being halted to allow all the chemicals to burn out. The concern was that all the water being used to extinguish the fire, would eventually create small streams that would allow chemicals from the plant to run into the Rock River, just a few hundred meters away.

Breathtaking Photos of Massive Chemtool Fire from Rockton, Illinois Residents

Steve Shannon is host of The Steve Shannon Show on 97ZOK. On the air weekday mornings from 6 to 10 a.m. and a special 'Rewind' show, featuring favorite moments from previous shows, on Saturday mornings from 5 to 7 a.m.. Follow him on Twitter, Instagram, and like his page on Facebook.