Stove Contributed To South Side Fire That Killed 2, Injured 3
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The Chicago Fire Department said a stove that was left on to heat a three-story apartment building in Woodlawn started a fire that killed a toddler, an infant and injured three others.
CBS 2's Sandra Torres reports.
Rodney Smith, a neighbor, recalled the moment he realized the house across the street was on fire.
"They were screaming for me to come and get their babies. I attempted to go in there but the smoke was just too fierce," he said.
Deputy District Chief Mike Carbone said firefighters also tried to go in the home on the 6600 block of South Champlain Avenue to rescue those trapped inside.
"Upon arrival the companies made an aggressive attack to try to knock that fire down and do a simultaneous search for any victims that were in there. As they approached a child, they were able to extricate him from the basement," he said.
A six-year-old boy and a Chicago Firefighter were among the injured after the blaze destroyed the South Side building. The boy is in critical condition at Comer's Children Hospital. The firefighter, who slipped and fell during the fire, has been released from the hospital.
7-month-old Ziya Grace and 2-year-old Jamaii Garce were found dead in the basement of the building. Autopsies ruled both deaths as accidents, and said they died of carbon monoxide intoxication and inhalation of smoke and soot.
Records from 2014 show the house having safety violations regarding the fire escape and stairs. Fire officials also said there were no smoke alarms in the basement, where the fire started.
The home is now boarded up, but that did not stop Neighbor Sally Johnson from placing balloons on a tree in front of the house to honor the dead girls.
"It just touched my heart. I was in church, and it just came to me. They're just kids," she said.