**From Dave Weaver, radioman911.com:**
**8/23/16 CHICAGO – Fatal 3-11 Alarm/EMS Response to a 4-Alarm Apartment Fire at 8114 S. Essex Ave. – Englewood Fire Radio Repeater Traffic (Edited for Major Transmissions Only, Heavily Time-Condensed)**
Recording by Radioman911/Audio via Broadcastify
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I just finished listening to the radio feed from last night’s devastating fire in Chicago’s South Side, and it’s honestly one of the worst I’ve heard in a long time. The fire broke out in the early hours of Tuesday morning at an apartment building located in the Englewood neighborhood, specifically at 8114 S. Essex Avenue. It all started around 1:35 a.m., when witnesses reported seeing someone deliberately set fire to the courtyard of this U-shaped building. Within minutes, the situation escalated rapidly, prompting firefighters to call a 2-11 Alarm before upgrading it to a full-blown 3-11 Alarm with an EMS Plan II response. That meant over 10 ambulances and nearly 150 firefighters were deployed to the scene, along with additional specialized equipment.
The fire department had their hands full from the very beginning. Deputy Fire Commissioner Arriel Gray mentioned during the transmission that the flames were so intense that both stairwells leading to the second and third floors were completely compromised. Firefighters couldn’t even enter the building due to the sheer heat and flames; instead, they had to fight the fire externally using ladders and hoses. It wasn’t until 5:39 a.m. that the fire was officially declared under control.
Unfortunately, the aftermath was grim. Four people lost their lives in this tragedy: a 3-month-old infant, two young girls aged 4 and 7, and a man. According to the Chicago Tribune, the baby was found near a man who had jumped from the third story of the building. Two other girls were discovered in an apartment on the same floor, while the man was found in an adjacent unit. A suspect, believed to be involved in an altercation prior to the fire, was apprehended by the police. Witnesses say multiple people jumped from the building to escape the flames, including some from the second and third floors on the south side of the U-shaped structure. Firefighters managed to rescue several others using ladders.
One thing that stood out to me while listening to the recordings was how dire the living conditions must have been for residents in this building. Records from the Chicago Department of Buildings show that this apartment complex has failed every single annual inspection since 2011. The latest failure was in November 2015. City inspectors weren’t even able to access most of the apartments or the rear porches during their visits due to safety concerns. Where they could inspect, they found significant issues like improperly secured porches, missing stairwell pickets, and rodent infestations—including mice droppings in kitchens. There were also numerous violations related to safety features like smoke detectors, emergency lighting, and fire extinguishers with expired tags.
As heartbreaking as the loss of life is, it’s clear that this fire was preventable if basic maintenance and safety protocols had been followed. Now, families are left grieving, and the community is grappling with the reality of yet another preventable tragedy in a city plagued by systemic neglect.
This incident serves as a stark reminder of why we need better oversight and enforcement of building codes—not just in Chicago, but everywhere. Let’s hope lessons are learned from this nightmare so that no one else has to endure such unimaginable pain.
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