2 firefighters injured in extra-alarm blaze in Humboldt Park
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Two firefighters were hospitalized after battling an extra-alarm blaze Tuesday morning in Humboldt Park, when one of them suffered from heat problems, and another cut his hand.
Assistant Deputy Fire Commissioner Donald Walker said the Fire Department got the first call about the fire around 10:50 a.m.
When crews arrived on scene, they spotted heavy fire coming from the windows of a 2 ½-story frame apartment building, with flames also visible at the rear of the building. Everyone who lived in the building had already gotten out safely, Walker said.
About 15 minutes after the first firefighters arrived on scene, a firefighter working on the roof suffered from heat exhaustion, prompting a mayday call, bringing in at least 50 more firefighters, according to Walker. Temperatures on Tuesday reached the low 80s, and Walker said firefighters' protective turnout gear can also cause them to become more easily overheated.
"When you hear a mayday across the radio, that's the worst thing we want to hear right now," Walker said. "We brought him off the roof and we brought him down, and he's in good condition."
The Fire Department later issued a 2-11 alarm to bring in more crews and equipment. A fire lieutenant also cut his hand while fighting the fire.
Both injured firefighters were taken to the hospital in good condition.
The fire was extinguished by late Tuesday morning.
Neighbor Ramon Ramos Jr. said he ran over after he and his wife saw the fire from down the street.
"I was one of the first people here. There was two little girls standing in the front, and I told them, 'Hey, your house is on fire,' and the two little girls knocked on the door, and this lady came out, and I told her, 'Hey, come on out, get out of the house, the house is on fire on the side,'" Ramos said.
After several other people came out of the building, one woman said her father was still inside, so Ramos and another man ran inside, and found the man standing by a doorway, and he appeared to be disoriented from the smoke, so they carried him outside.
"It was a first time for me. It was a crazy situation," Ramos said.
No civilians were injured in the fire. Walker said the cause of the fire was under investigation Tuesday afternoon.
