An 18-month-old girl has died following a house fire in the West Side's Little Village neighborhood.
Kaylan Quintero was killed after a fire broke out in her home in the 2600 block of W. 22nd Place. The little girl was pronounced dead at 4:40 a.m. at John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County,
The fire broke out in the basement and first floor the two-and-a-half story house around 11:05 p.m. Saturday, Fire Media Affairs Spokesman Joe Roccasalva said.
Police officers who responded to the blaze found firefighters already there and spoke to a 22-year-old Fernando Quintero who told police he was at was home with his two children in a first-floor apartment of the building before the blaze erupted, according to a police report.
Quintero told officers he went outside to throw out some garbage and when he came back in, he found the fire. He was able to rescue one child who was identified by the medical examiner’s office as Kaylan, but was unable to find his 4-year-old son Alex Quintero immediately, according to the report.
Quintero later learned the little boy was able to get out of the apartment on his own. Occupants of the second floor of the burning building -- a 72-year-old year old man, a 55-year old woman and 10-year-old girl managed to leave their apartment without injury as well, according to the report.
Kaylan was administered first aid on the scene by fire department paramedics and was taken initially in critical condition to Mount Sinai with multiple burns and smoke inhalation, according to the report.
The cause of the fire is under investigation, police News Affairs Officer John Mirabelli said.
In the hours after the blaze, firefighters went door-to-door in the Little Village neighborhood to remind people to check their smoke detectors, and have a plan in case of a fire emergency.
