Wheelchair-Bound Man Dies In Calumet City Fire
CALUMET CITY, Ill. (CBS) -- A wheelchair-bound man died Friday morning when an electrical fire broke out in his Calumet City home.
Eric G. Salazar, 32, died in the blaze that started about 5 a.m. at his home 1300 block of Imperial Avenue in Calumet City, according to police in the southern suburb.
Salazar, who was found in a back bedroom, was paralyzed and confined to a wheelchair, according to a release from police.
He was pronounced dead on the scene, according to the Cook County Medical Examiner's office.
A neighbor reported hearing glass breaking in the rear of the building and saw flames coming out of a window.
Flames were showing when emergency crews showed up, but firefighters were able to extinguish the blaze shortly after arrival, according to a Calumet City Fire Dept. captain.
The captain said no one else was in the house.
The cause of the blaze is believed to be electrical, police said. A source said an overloaded electrical cord in that bedroom is suspected.
The Sun-Times Media Wire contributed to this report.
