Woman killed in Palatine house fire, daughter severely injured

Bryan Urban and his daughter Lydiah were visiting with relatives on the back porch of his childhood home Friday evening in Palatine when they heard a smoke alarm going off nearby.

They took a few steps toward the noise and saw smoke pouring from the windows and walls of the tri-level home just three doors down on the 100 block of Oak Street.

"The smoke was just flowing from the windows - waterfalling basically," said Lydiah Urban, 21, of Rolling Meadows, who quickly called 911. "A dark, sooty smoke."

Authorities said Saturday that 63-year-old Lois A. Demos died and her disabled daughter Lindsey was critically injured in the blaze that started just after 8 p.m. Two other people who were hurt trying to rescue the victims were back home today.

Late Saturday morning, fire officials said the blaze does not appear to be suspicious, but rather "a tragically horrible accident." Local and state fire investigators were still at the scene Saturday morning trying to determine the exact cause.

As Bryan and Lydiah approached the home Friday night, they found a man with a severe cut to his leg, injured while kicking out a window. His wife was also injured attempting to enter the home, Palatine Deputy Chief William Gabrenya said.

The Urbans witnessed a window break above their heads from a top-level bedroom where two people were believed to be trapped, Bryan Urban said.

He and another neighbor pried open the metal front door but were knocked back by the heavy smoke that seemed to come from an upstairs bedroom, he said.

"The smoke literally knocked us down," he said. "It was crazy intense. Our lungs were just burning."

They grabbed a garden hose and attempted to go in again but were held up by the thick, dark smoke. Yet another neighbor tied a shirt over his face and entered again, Bryan said.

"We only got six to eight feet into the building," Bryan Urban said. "It was a choking smoke. You couldn't get in. And that was basically it."

Firefighters arrived within four minutes, Gabrenya said, and when neighbors reported occupants were still inside the house and trapped, firefighters entered the front door and second-floor windows for search and rescue.

Lois Demos was found unconscious near a bedroom and her semiconscious daughter, who authorities said is approximately 20 years old, was found near the living room. Despite lifesaving measures, the woman was pronounced dead at Northwest Community Hospital, while her daughter received treatment there and was transferred to the burn unit at Loyola Medical Center in Maywood. Lindsey Demos' condition Saturday was unknown.

Urban described them as "severely burned." A dog was also rescued and survived, he said.

The two neighbors injured trying to help were taken to St. Alexius Medical Center in Hoffman Estates, where they initially were listed in stable condition. They back home today.

Bryan Urban, who now lives in St. Louis, was in Palatine visiting his parents, Lydiah's grandparents, who still live in the home in which Bryan grew up. Their family has known the fire victims for decades.

"It was horrible," he said.

Gabrenya commended all of the neighbors and friends who to tried to help.

"The neighbors came out and attempted to go in and try to get them out which is very heroic," he said. "They were just driven back by the fire."

The fire was under control within 15 minutes after firefighters arrived, officials said. The house sustained heavy fire damage and is uninhabitable. The cause of the fire remains under investigation by Palatine fire and police and the Illinois State Fire Marshall's Office.

The fire was fought by 36 firefighters and eight ambulances responded. Arlington Heights, Rolling Meadows, Palatine Rural Fire District, Hoffman Estates and Schaumburg Fire Departments assisted in medical treatment and ground support.

Staff writer Jake Griffin contributed to this report.