Attempt To Thaw Pipes Causes Aurora Fire, Officials Say

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(CBS) -- An elderly man was displaced when a fire caused extensive damage to an apartment building Friday afternoon in west suburban Aurora.

The fire was first reported at 12:49 p.m. at a two-story, six-unit building in the 1300 block of Monomoy Street, according to a statement from the Aurora Fire Department. Crews arrived to find light smoke showing from the front of the building and entered to discover heavy fire in a common wall separating two apartments.

Firefighters battle an apartment fire that left a man displaced Dec. 29 in Aurora. (Aurora Fire Department)

The fire started in the basement of a vacant apartment when the owner was trying to thaw frozen pipes using a propane heater, the fire department said. The owner told investigators that the unit had recently been broken into, and the broken window caused the pipes to freeze.

The blaze was extinguished by 22 firefighters less than two hours later, fire officials said. No injuries were reported.

The damage caused by the fire was estimated at $125,000, the fire department said. The vacant apartment and the unit next door to it were both rendered uninhabitable, leaving an elderly man displaced. The American Red Cross was contacted to assist him with housing.