Fire sweeps through apartment building in Chicago's North Park neighborhood
Five families in Chicago's North Park neighborhood were left without a home Thursday after an extra-alarm fire broke out in an apartment complex.
The fire broke out in the three-story apartment building with a garden level at 5134 N. Kimball Ave., just south of Foster Avenue and the Albany Park Branch of the Chicago Public Library and about a block from Frederick Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center High School. The building has eight large apartments, five of which were occupied, according to Chicago Fire Department 1st District Chief Jim McDonough.
The building is also located directly across the street from the Carole Robertson Center for Learning and a short distance from Frederick Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center High School.
The Fire Department was called to the scene at 4:57 p.m. Heavy flames and a massive amount of smoke were seen billowing out of the roof.
While earlier reports indicated that two twin buildings caught fire, it was actually just one building with two wings of apartments and an outdoor wooden staircase structure in between in the back.
Upon arriving, firefighters found the enclosed rear porches in the back of the building were all engulfed in flames. They launched a coordinated fire attack from the alley.
The Fire Department searched the building and found that everyone escaped safely, McDonough said. The Fire Department set up an aerial tower to send water cascading down from high above the apartment buildings. Firefighters had to let some of the roof material burn away to get down tot the seed of the
But all afternoon and evening, families were standing outside the burning building — wondering if there was going to be anything left.
Many neighbors were worried if the smoke and water would damage their units even if the fire didn't, while those inside the main structure were dealing with a significant loss.
The back of the units saw the most damage.
"My building is very close to that building," said Ngozi Chukwjine, who owns the building next door and watched as firefighters blaze from her building. "Thank God I was here and I saw the fire, so I called out my tenants — because they didn't know."
At one point, the flames reignited as firefighters sprayed down the building. The building has a brick exterior, but everything inside was made of flammable wood, including walls and rafters, McDonough said.
The wood inside caused the building to burn quick.
"I was trying to burn the roof off to get at that fire. It makes no sense to throw water on top of a fire you can't get to," McDonough said.
McDonough said the flames started on the first floor and rose through the roof.
The Fire Department set up an aerial tower to send water cascading down from high above the apartment buildings. Firefighters had to let some of the roof material burn away to get down tot the seed of the fire.
Firefighters had to call for more resources to fight the blaze, raising a 2-11 alarm. A 2-11 alarm sends at least eight engines, four trucks, two tower ladders, five battalion chiefs, a district chief, a deputy district chief, a squad company, an ambulance and the Command Van to the scene. A total of 32 companies and about 99 firefighters respond for a 2-11 alarm, McDonough said.
There was no wind to exacerbate the fire, but the heat was an issue.
"That's where we escalated the alarm to 2-11 just, because it is warm. It's going to get warmer through the weekend, so same thing will happen," said McDonough. "So we're going to start rehab right away, and we're going to replace fire companies, firefighters, and we're going to rotate them."
Those displaced were seen walking with no shoes or belongings for a brief time.
"This is almost three hours now, and it's not stopping," said Souradje Djinadou.
The Salvation Army was on the scene right away offering assistance.
"I'm praying for everyone who lost their things inside," said neighbor Henry Vasquez. "I saw a bunch of people crying out here."
"Right now, I am just happy I am alive and my family and my tenants, and I pray that the people who are directly impacted," added Chukwjine. "I pray that there are no deaths."
Fire officials said no one was injured, and everyone was accounted for.
The cause of the fire was under investigation late Thursday. But the Fire Department believes it started somewhere in the back of an apartment like the kitchen, because the porches were engulfed in flames right when they arrived.
