Fire Breaks Out In Loft Condo Building On Near West Side
UPDATED 07/19/11 8:38 a.m.
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The oppressive heat of the day is yet to come, but the Chicago Fire Department was ready for it this morning when firefighters fought a smoky deck fire on the roof of a Near West Side loft condo building.
As WBBM Newsradio 780's Bernie Tafoya reports, the rooftop deck at the Park 1500 Lofts, 1500 W. Monroe St., was damaged in the fire that broke out around 5:05 a.m. Tuesday.
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The fire was contained to a rooftop deck of the seven-floor apartment building, Langford said. There is very little smoke inside the building and residents were evacuated. Alarms sounded in the building, which prompted many residents to evacuate on their own.
No one was injured, Langford said.
Fire Commissioner Bob Hoff said rotating fire crews were used, which is key to battling fires when the weather gets as hot as it is this week. Also of importance is having what is known as a rehab unit on the scene to provide drinking water and medical checkups for firefighters.
"When the first arriving companies come down – because they did the bulk of the work – they're going to come down and go into rehab. Paramedics will check their blood pressures," Hoff said. "It's a routine that we do in hot weather."
Altogether, 150 firefighters and paramedics were on hand to fight the fire, with extra crews on hand if needed to give a breather to the first fire crews.
A rooftop deck was damaged early Tuesday during a fire at a high-rise apartment building in the West Loop. No one was injured.
By 5:50 a.m., the fire was out, but delays continued long afterward in the area due to fire equipment staged on nearby streets, CBS 2's Derrick Young reported.
The Sun-Times Media Wire contributed to this report.
