Fire rips through vacant apartment building in Oak Park, Illinois

A large fire in an apartment building in the west Chicago suburb of Oak Park was under investigation Wednesday morning.

The fire broke out at 8:57 p.m. Tuesday in the apartment building at 1229 N. Taylor Ave., at the intersection with North Avenue where Oak Park meets Chicago's Galewood neighborhood to the north.

Flames were shooting violently from the top floor of the building.

Oak Park fire Chief JT Terry said the building was unoccupied. Firefighters conducted a full search, and no one was found inside, Terry said.

Because the fire was so big, firefighters from Elmhurst, Oak Brook, and the Chicago Fire Department were called in to fight the flames.

North Avenue was closed to traffic Wednesday morning as cleanup efforts continued, the fire department said.

An investigation into the cause of the fire was to begin later Wednesday morning.