CFD Battalion Chief Hurt In Crash While Responding To Uptown Fire
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A Chicago Fire Department battalion chief was injured in a crash Saturday afternoon while responding to a fire in the Uptown neighborhood.
Officials said the chief was on his way to a fire on the 1400 block of West Carmen Avenue when he collided with another car at the intersection of Sheridan Road and Foster Avenue, less than a mile away.
The chief was taken to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center to be treated for an injury to his right ankle. The other driver was taken to AMITA Health Saint Francis Hospital Evanston in fair to serious condition.
The fire the chief was responding to started on the back porch of a three-story building on the 1400 block of West Carmen Avenue around 3:15 p.m. and spread to a neighboring building. The fire was extinguished by 4:30 p.m.
"We were making lunch in our kitchen across the alley, and we saw a huge column of fire and heat that dissipated quickly, but we didn't know what was happening or how fast it was going to keep spreading," neighbor Ben Lipinski said. "It seemed like everybody got out safe."
No one was injured in the fire, but residents in at least four units will have to find another place to stay.
