Fire consumes commercial building in downtown East St. Louis

Firefighters battled a blaze in a commercial building Thursday afternoon that prompted authorities to close Missouri Avenue in downtown East St. Louis.

The multi-level brick building, located at 412-414 Missouri Ave., features a concrete monument at the top engraved with “1904.”

Fairmont City Fire Chief Robert Allen said his department was dispatched at 1:16 p.m. and arrived at 1:21 p.m. The department had the first ladder truck to respond to the fire.

An East St. Louis police officer at the scene said homeless individuals are known to seek shelter in the building and were “just trying to stay warm” on a cold December day, when the high temperature was expected to reach 25 degrees. The officer said everyone in the building was able to escape the fire.

St. Clair County property records indicate the site at 412 Missouri Ave. is owned by Rex Carr Law Firm LLC. The registered agent for the company is Registered Agents Inc., located at 2501 Chatham Road, Suite R, in Springfield, according to Illinois Secretary of State records.

Attorney Rex Carr, the namesake of the law firm, died in 2015. A representative of Registered Agents Inc. could not be reached for comment Thursday.

This story was originally published December 4, 2025 at 2:44 PM.