CHICAGO (STMW) – A firefighter was injured a during a fire Sunday morning in the South Side’s Chatham community.

The fire started in the back of a two-story bungalow about 6:25 a.m. at 8221 S. St. Lawrence Ave., according to Fire Media Affairs spokesman Joe Roccasalva.

Occupants were able to safely escape and the blaze spread to the buildings on either side of the fire building, but didn’t cause major damage other than melting the siding on the neighboring buildings, Roccasalva said.

A firefighter suffered an injury to his eye during the fire. He was taken to University of Chicago Hospitals but his injury was not life-threatening, according to Roccasalva.

The blaze was extinguished by about 7 a.m. and left the house badly damaged, he said. The city department of human services was contacted because the occupants needed somewhere to stay.

The cause and origin were both unknown as of early Sunday afternoon.

(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2010. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)