Man Found Dead, Four Displaced After Austin House Fire

(STMW) -- A man was found dead after a fire broke out in a house Saturday night in the Austin neighborhood, leaving four others — including two children — in need of shelter on the West Side.

Crews responded to a fire in the 5200 block of West Congress Parkway at 9:42 p.m., where fire was seen coming out of the basement of a two-story building, fire officials said.

Travis Johnson, 36, was found in the basement and taken to Loretto Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 10:15 p.m., according to fire officials and the Cook County medical examiner's office. Johnson lived on the same block as the fire. An autopsy was scheduled for Sunday.

The building was rendered uninhabitable, fire officials said. Two adults and two children displaced by the fire were assisted by the Chicago Red Cross.

Deputy District Chief David Dietz told reporters at the scene that fire detectors were working on the first floor, but crews were working to determine if fire detectors were working in the basement.

The cause is under investigation.

Austin
Fire