Woman, baby rescued from Des Plaines townhouse fire

A woman and baby were rescued from the basement of a burning townhouse in Des Plaines Friday night, authorities said.

Both victims were unconscious when firefighters arrived about 6:45 p.m. on the 1300 block of Fargo Street but were successfully resuscitated on scene, according to Des Plaines Fire Chief Alan Wax.

The woman and baby boy were taken to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge and were listed in critical but stable condition. Both are expected to survive, Wax said.

At the scene, emergency crews were told by witnesses that people were trapped in the basement. Firefighters went down the basement stairs and experienced “a large volume” of fire as they attempted to find the two home occupants, Wax said.

“Des Plaines personnel did an outstanding job of rescuing these two victims despite the difficult situation,” Wax said.

Another adult woman suffered minor burns on her hand and was transported to the hospital, where she was listed in stable condition.

Fire investigators have indicated that a gasoline can was knocked down the stairs, and the spillage was ignited by the pilot light from a water heater.

Crews were able to extinguish the blaze in about a half-hour, Wax said.

The building sustained significant damage and is uninhabitable in the short-term, Wax said.