Remarkable comments from the audio …
Battalion 23 (first in command) arriving on the scene reports a confirmed fire in a one-story building ordinary 40×120 or 125 feet that looks like a vacant commercial structure.
Corrected address 1744 East 75th Street.
Truck 16 is assigned RIT truck.
Battalion 18 assigned Box Chief.
Battalion 23 reports they have run into a couple of frozen hydrants and requests a Still and Box alarm for the working fire with a staging area at 75th Street and Stoney.
Truck 16 assigned a Box Truck.
Bat 23 wants to know who is third fire engine is — Engine 63.
Bat 23 two lines on the fire with positive source water and the fire is under control.
Battalion 18 calls a MAYDAY alert, 2-11 alarm, and EMS Plan I is called four minutes into this recorded audio.
Call for Squad 5 to bring a Hurst tool and air bags at the rear of the building to lift heavy structures off of firefighters.
Truck 50 diverted from change of quarters response and moved up to the scene to be a second RIT truck.
2-1-2-6 taking over command.
2-1-2-6 request for Engine 46 to bring a line out to the rear of the building.
Request for two ambulances to the rear of the building.
Two firefighters rescued from the rear of the building … working on two more.
Engine company request to the rear of the building immediately with a line.
2-1-1-0 calls for a 3-11 Alarm (more fire equipment and manpower) and an EMS Plan 2 (which brings a total of about ten ambulances to the scene).
Four guys still trapped and just completed on removal … reports fire starting to extend (fire starting to pick up in the building again) … urgent request for water at the back of the building.
Engine 60 called to the back of the building.
Working on getting second victim out of the rear … need 5-2-1 (Collapse Rescue) to the rear of the building.
2-1-1-0 request for another RIT truck (Rapid Intervention Team)
Truck 62 assigned to RIT truck with Battalion 4 requested to arrive in from the west.
Fuel truck request to keep fire equipment fueled.
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Rapid Intervention Teams are crews of firefighters that are designated to rescuing firefighters that are working at the fire. RIT crews are usually present at all working fires.
Englewood is the south side dispatch center for Chicago Fire Department.
A line is a hose line.
Sector 1 — A sector is physical or operational division of an incident. If there had been other operations going on, there would have been other sectors going on as well. Sector 1 was the operational division where the firefighters were being rescued.
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Firefighters killed were Edward J. Stringer, of Engine 63 and Corey D. Ankum, of Truck 34.
Seventeen firefighters were also injured in the roof/building collapse at 1744 East 75th Street in Chicago.
Two firefighters were killed, four firefighters were reported in serious-to-critical condition, and ten firefighters were reported injured in stable condition after a wall and roof collapse just after 7:00 a.m. CST. Firefighters responded to a routine fire at a vacant one-story commercial building at 1744 East 75th Street, and were inside searching for homeless occupants when a rear roof collapsed and a MAYDAY alert was called. The rear roof was a bowstring truss roof, and the front roof of the building was a flat roof.
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Firefighters worked expeditiously to rescue up to 16 firefighters that were injured by the collapsed roof. After the collapse, the extra-alarm fire was elevated from a 2-11 to a 3-11. An EMS Plan 2 was also called for the incident. Firefighters were rescued from different corners of the building.
Fire Commissioner Robert S. Hoff on-scene press conference — wgntv.com.
As soon as the roof collapsed, a RIT (Rapid Intervention Team) crew responded and a Personnel Accountability Report (“PAR”) was underway. Two firefighters were immediately rescued and rescue operations were underway for two firefighters that were under a collapsed wall and roof of the building. A third firefighter was reported rescued just after 8:00 a.m. Video of frantic removal of debris by hand from a group of about 50 firefighters was seen from ABC 7 Channel 7 CHOPPER 7 HD this morning and the helicopter from WGN TV. At 8:13 a.m. a fireground radio communication declared all firefighters ‘were accounted for.’
The extra-alarm fire was a 2-11 just before 7:10 a.m. and raised to a 3-11 just before 7:20 a.m. as the fire was reported to be extending in the building.
Firefighters reported having water supply problems with frozen fire hydrants. Fires often are at risk of getting out of control when manpower is focused on rescues, and when water supply problems exist. However, the fire was under control or struckout with firefighters checking for hot spots and a secondary search for victims when the roof collapsed.
Chicago police escorted two ambulances north on Lake Shore Drive to Level I Trauma Center Northwestern Memorial Hospital as roadway ramps were closed to clear traffic for the escort. One firefighter that was transported to Northwestern later died. The other firefighter was apparently one of the firefighters in serious-to-critical condition.
The third firefighter rescued from the rubble was transported to Level I Trauma Center Advocate Christ Medical Center, where he later died.
The fourth firefighter buried in debris and building material was transported along with 10 or 12 other firefighters were transported to area hospitals.
At about 9:00 a.m. a report that a total of 15 ambulance transports occurred from the scene — apparently including firefighters involved in the roof collapse and rescue afterwards.
The 3-11 Alarm fire was struck out at 9:11 a.m. Monday. The EMS Plan II was struck out at 9:11 a.m. Monday. The MAYDAY was also announced secured at 9:11 a.m.
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The breaking news report of the fire incident is published at The Cardinal Chicago Fire Department: Four Firefighters Trapped in Extra Alarm Fire on 75th Street, Two Rescued Immediately