Family Devastated After Man Is Killed, Girlfriend Is Seriously Hurt In Maywood Fire
MAYWOOD, Ill. (CBS) -- A father is dead after a fire broke out early Sunday morning in Maywood.
The family said first responders found him and his girlfriend unresponsive Sunday morning. CBS 2's Steven Graves spoke Sunday evening to loved ones who are looking for closure.
Clint Brown was looking at a high school reunion photo from last summer.
"I'll always cherish this picture - being there with him," he said.
It is one of the last photos Brown took with his brother, Cedric.
Brown clings onto it now that his brother is gone – the third of four siblings to pass away.
"So we were devastated because we had just lost our oldest sister, and it's just sad," Brown said.
Around 1:55 a.m. Sunday, the Maywood Fire Department was called to a house in the 100 block of South 9th Avenue for a report of a fire. They found a two-story frame building with two units going up in smoke, with flames on the first floor.
Firefighters found Cedric Brown, 54, and his girlfriend in the fire. The family got a call that they were both found unresponsive after the fire.
Officials said both suffered smoke inhalation. Cedric Brown had burns on half of his body.
Family rushed to find him at the Loyola University Medical Center, where they were told he died.
"It's still - it's just tough," Clint Brown said, "especially now, it's just happening like this."
Neighbors said they saw Cedric and his girlfriend pulled out of the first floor where the fire started. They said there was also a man on the second floor who saw the flames from a window, but got out through the back door.
Investigators told CBS 2 there were working smoke detectors on that upper floor, but that was not the case for the unit where the couple was found.
Family said Cedric Brown and his girlfriend had lived in the house for some years. Cedric devoted his time to loved ones and volunteering at the Salvation Army.
"Cedric was a really faithful person," Clint Brown said. "We know he will still be cherished and loved."
At last check, Cedric's family said his girlfriend did have a heartbeat and was rushed into emergency surgery. As of late Sunday afternoon, the cause of this fire was still under investigation.