Aurora fire leaves 5 injured

A 55-year-old Aurora woman who suffered severe burns was one of five injured in an early Saturday morning fire on the city’s near east side.

City spokesman Dan Ferrelli said the cause of the fire in the 96-unit building at 905 2nd Avenue still was under investigation Saturday afternoon and that two families had been displaced by the fire.

Officials said the fire started just before 4 a.m. in a third-floor apartment and was isolated to that unit, though the unit directly above it also was left uninhabitable.

When firefighters arrived, they found heavy smoke throughout the entire third floor. They rescued three people from inside the building and seven from third-floor windows.

The unidentified 55-year-old woman, a resident of the apartment where the fire began, suffered third-degree burns on 15 percent of her body and was transported to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood. Two other women, ages 45 and 22, who lived in nearby apartments, were treated at Rush-Copley Medical Center for smoke inhalation.

Ferrelli said one firefighter suffered minor injuries when he was hit with a piece of equipment while fighting the fire and another was treated for heat exhaustion. Both were both treated at Rush Copley Medical Center and released.

Damage to the four-story apartment building was estimated at $75,000.

The Victim Services Unit and American Red Cross assisted residents on the scene with food, clothing, and other necessities.