By Bob Bong and Nuha Abdessalam
The new year had only just begun when tragedy struck families living in a three-story apartment building in Hickory Hills.
One man died, a second man was badly injured and several families were displaced by an early morning apartment fire Tuesday.
Roberts Park Fire Department Chief Jeff Ketchen said the fire started around 1:40 a.m. when firefighters were alerted to smoke coming from a three-story apartment building near the corner of 87th Street and 80th Court in Hickory Hills.
When firefighters arrived, they found two people inside a first-floor apartment’s kitchen area. They were taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in nearby Oak Lawn where one was pronounced dead. He was not identified as of press time.
“Our crew responded very quickly because they were already in the area on another call,” said Ketchen. “Once they arrived, they knocked the fire down in about 15 minutes.”
Ketchen said it was nine-unit apartment building and the fire was contained to a single unit, but there was smoke damage throughout the building.
He said the fire originated in a bedroom, but the cause is still under investigation.
At least three families were displaced by the fire and were receiving assistance from the Red Cross.
Areana Richmond, a resident of the apartment complex unit for two years, said she was able to flee from the building to safety.
“I woke up to the smell of the smoke and hearing my niece and nephew making noise about what was happening,” said Richmond.
Richmond, her family, and neighbors were forced to leave from the front of the building when escaping from the back exit was impossible due to too much smoke.
Richmond returned after having to abruptly leave to retrieve some belongings, and her cat, Spooky.
Scared, disheveled, and now displaced, Richmond was relieved knowing her cat was out of the building, and relatively okay.
Roberta Roman’s daughter and her boyfriend live directly next to the first-floor unit where the fire began.
They’re out of town on a trip right now, but her dog was still inside. Thankfully, the dog was found safe in a very smoky apartment, Roman told ABC7.
“I’m relieved and like I said, I’m going to go in right now because I don’t know what the smell is like in there or if there’s fire damage,” Roman said. “There might not be anything who knows. It’s an older building. They’re usually built a lot better than today’s buildings. So, I’m going to pray for that. And hopefully they can come home and spend the night at their home. That’s what I’m hoping.”
“I take all my precautions to get safe,” Carlos Valdovinos, another displaced resident, told ABC7.
Joy Squire, with the Illinois Region Red Cross, said the agency was assisting some of the displaced renters make living arrangements and get necessary supplies including medicines as well as counseling.
“If anyone still needs assistance,” she said. “They should call us at 1-800-REDCROSS.”
Nicor Gas representatives were on the scene late in the morning, but declined to comment.
The apartment was boarded up within a few hours after fire crews arrived on scene.
The Hickory Hills Police Department issued a news release that said a preliminary investigation showed the fire started in a bedroom and the likely cause was cigarette smoking.