Fire Tears Through Ravenswood Apartment, Adjacent Building
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A fire tore through a Ravenswood apartment building early Saturday on the North Side, leaving as many as eight people without a home.
Flames engulfed the back porches and shot out of the building's roof, located in the 5100 block of North Paulina, around 1 a.m. The fire was so heavy it required five hoses to snuff out.
"The firefighters had to break all the windows and poke holes in the roof and everything. It was pretty, pretty intense for a while," said Jim Callahan, who lives on North Paulina.
The three-story residential building took the brunt of the damage, but video shows smoke pouring out of the adjacent home, located on Winona St., as well
Crews were able to quench the flames within an hour, however six unites were damaged. Additionally, board-up crews said the adjacent home is also ruined, and was recently renovated.
"They just finished fixing it up, and I felt so bad because I know there's been a lot of time and money on it," said Jan Gerding, a neighbor.
The apartment building rekindled its flames on the third floor around 5:30 a.m. Firefighters ultimately returned to the property three times for flare-ups.
Fire officials said they do not believe anyone is injured.
