At least two people were injured in an extra-alarm fire on Chicago's Southwest Side early Wednesday, officials said.
Firefighters responded to the 2-11 alarm fire at around 2 a.m. at a building in the 2600 block of West 24th Street in the city's Little Village neighborhood, according to the Chicago Fire Department.
The building was "fully engulfed" in flames with exposure to homes on both sides, fire officials said, forcing evacuations.
Authorities said two adults were injured in the blaze, with a woman suffering burns and a man smoke inhalation. Both were outside when first responders arrived, officials said.
One of the victims was taken to Stroger Hospital and the other to Mount Sinai Medical Center. Further details on the victims, including their ages and conditions, was not immediately available.
"We had no idea," neighbor Nereyda Guzman said. "We were sleeping when we heard the screams, so we came out."
The majority of the fire was put out by around 5 a.m., though firefighters were still hosing hot spots, particularly in the attic. The roof and chimney caved in and trapped some of the fire, officials said on the scene, making the blaze more hazardous and some hot spots particularly challenging to extinguish.
Local
"We had a chimney collapse early into the fire," Chicago Fire Chief Timothy Sampey said.
"It provided a hazardous condition even traveling through the gangways, so in that point in time, you're collapsing walls which is trapping fire beneath it," he continued.
"If we can’t get in there to get to it, it’s a matter of it burning through or getting as many angles as we can to get water on the fire," Sampey added.
More than 100 firefighters responded to the scene and the home appeared to be a total loss, authorities said.
The cause of the fire remained under investigation.
