Firefighters spent hours battling a building fire at an apartment complex on Saturday evening in south suburban Chicago Ridge.
The fire was reported prior to 5 p.m. at a three-story building along Brooks Lane adjacent to Interstate 294.
Firefighters from Chicago Ridge and nearby agencies faced frigid cold and heavy winds, which sent smoke south onto the interstate near 107 Street.
One resident said she believes the fire started near her first-floor apartment, which she recently moved into.
"I don’t even have my shoes," Sandra Pfingsten said. "I was lucky I grabbed my purse because it was right next to the door with my laptop."
She and others lost everything in a matter of minutes.
"I just lost all the pictures, just everything is gone," Pfingsten said. "I depleted all my savings, everything I had. I bought brand new when I moved in, and now everything’s just gone."
Local
Chicago Ridge fire officials said no injuries were reported, and everyone living in the building had been displaced. The American Red Cross was working with affected residents to find warming shelters late Saturday.
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