By Nereida Moreno
Chicago Tribune
CHICAGO — A mayday call was issued after a Chicago fire captain got separated from his company and was overcome by smoke at a South Side apartment fire Wednesday in the Bronzeville neighborhood, officials said.
It took a rescue team about three minutes “to get him out,” according to Deputy Fire Cmsr. Bill Vogt. The captain was taken to Stroger Hospital where he was listed in serious condition from smoke inhalation, Vogt said.
No other injuries were reported.
Crews were called to the 4300 block of South King Drive a little before 1:30 p.m. Not long after they arrived, the mayday was called along with an emergency medical services plan 1, which sends at least five ambulances.
The mayday was canceled shortly before 2 p.m. after the captain was taken to the hospital and the building was searched. Everyone else was accounted for, according to Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford.
No one was home when the fire started on the fourth floor, Vogt said. Officials were investigating the cause.
Firefighters could be seen on the top level of the pouring water on hotspots as white smoke billowed. A ladder was set up on the side of the building, which is near the middle of a mostly residential block. Yellow police tape kept passersby from the building.
Vogt said eight people were displaced.
Copyright 2018 Chicago Tribune
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