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3 Firefighters Among 6 Injured In West Side House Fire

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Three firefighters were injured after being trapped in a house fire in the Little Village neighborhood and an adult and two children were also hurt.

The fire began around 1 p.m. in the 3000 block of South Drake.

An adult and two small children got out of the house, gasping for air. Firefighters rushed inside to look for other victims and soon found themselves in a very dangerous situation, trapped by the flames in the basement. That's when the mayday call was made.

3 Firefighters Among 6 Injured In West Side House Fire

"There was a window in the north end of the building and because of the layout of this basement and the way this was cut up it probably vented the glass and now the air from once that was vented also aided in having this fire swing around into the back area were now protruded out of this vent area and now the fire was behind our firefighters," said Deputy Fire Chief Kenneth Wojtecki.

Rescue teams got the firefighters out of the house. All suffered minor burns and are expected to be ok at Stroger Hospital. The adult and two children are also in the hospital for treatment for smoke inhalation. Fire spokesman Larry Langford says the adult was transported in serious to critical condition.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

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