Norwood Park firefighters fought an early morning blaze, despite the extreme cold conditions.
Firefighters responded to a call around 5 a.m. of a house fire with people trapped at 7911 Gunnison St., according to Commander David Blondell.
“When we arrived, people were screaming from the second floor,” he said.
Fire was consuming the first floor at the time, but with the help of two Norridge police officers, firefighters were able to rescue all eight family members stuck on the second floor of the two-story home.
Blondell said the department was able to get the fire under control about 7 a.m., but the weather hampered earlier attempts.
The main issue firefighters faced was the water main breaks, Blondell said, which aren’t unexpected in such extreme weather.
“This was a tough one,” he said. “We didn’t have water for the first half hour.
“Otherwise, we would have been able to put the fire out pretty quickly.”
The structure still was smoldering at 11 a.m.
“The operation went pretty well,” Blondell said.
He credited training and proper equipment for that.
Blondell added the village may have to tear down the remaining skeleton of the home for safety reasons.
All firefighters made it back to the firehouse without injuries.
Village President James Chmura later confirmed the village demolished the remains of the structure.
He acknowledged water mains hampered efforts, but also noted the village continuously has embarked on replacing water mains on an annual basis at a cost of about $300,000 each.
“But the most important thing people should remember is that our police and firefighters are out there when needed,” Chmura emphasized. “You got 30 degrees below zero (wind chill) and the family already was out of the house.
“But the firefighters stayed and got the job done.”
Blondell said the eight family members and two police officers, who helped with the evacuation, were taken to hospitals to be checked out
“But I’m glad everyone is OK,” he added. “The kids are OK.
“That’s what matters most.”