The power of Wednesday’s fire was visible in the black smoke billowing out of the windows of a high-rise building located near 71st Street and Jeffrey Boulevard.
Cell phone video captured by a witness below showed a resident and baby using the fire department’s ladder to make their way out of the unit and to safety, and they were not the only ones.
“There was a lady hanging out of the window saying she needed help, said witness Dominick Williams. “Everybody started hanging out of the building.”
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It was a distressing scene for the dozens of people who gathered outside, concerned for their friends and their neighbors.
“I saw the firefighters rescue at least two people,” witness Lupino Dickerson said. “They took care of business. I am proud of Chicago’s Fire Department.”
CFD said the flames started in the kitchen of a second-floor apartment, but quickly filled the rest of the building with smoke.
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Some were screaming for help from their windows, as fire crews started making rescues. One person jumped from the fourth floor and survived.
“It’s sad, it’s sad,” witness Warren Mack, Jr. said.
Investigators are still looking into the cause of the fire.
