A woman in her 50s jumped from a burning apartment building Thursday morning, breaking her leg, but surviving the fire that caused extensive damage to two apartments and has about 16 people -- half of them children -- looking for an alternative place to spend their morning.
Another woman, in her early 70s, suffered smoke inhalation.
Fire Department investigators are looking at an air conditioner in a South Chicago neighborhood apartment building as the possible source of the fire early Thursday.
The fire at 7645 S. Kingston Ave. was reported at 2:35 a.m., according to Fire Media Director Larry Langford.
The fire started in the bedroom of a second-floor apartment, he said, and it may have begun in an air conditioning unit. The blaze traveled to the building's third floor, and as a result the second- and third-floor apartments of the building were "extensively damaged," he said.
The fire was extinguished by about 3:30 a.m., but because of the damage to the apartments, the residents -- eight adults and "seven or eight" children -- need to find alternate housing for the time being, Langford said. The city's Department of Human Services was called to the scene to assist in these efforts.
Additional information provided by Chicago Sun-Times Inc.
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