Chicago firefighters responded to an extra-alarm blaze Monday morning at a liquor store in the city's Bridgeport neighborhood.
Crews were called to the fire at 8:22 a.m. in the 2900 block of South Archer Avenue, according to Chicago fire officials.
The blaze was quickly upgraded to an extra-alarm fire and turned into a “fully defensive operation,” as the roof began to give way, officials said.
Photos and video from the scene show heavy smoke billowing out of a building, nearly enveloping an entire intersection. Firefighters can be seen pouring water on the fire and smoke from multiple angels, with some crews working to put the fire out through a doorway in an alley.
One firefighter was transported to an area hospital for a “minor issue,” officials said.
No other injuries were reported.
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The building where the fire occurred houses both a restoration store in front, and a liquor store in back, Jim McDonough, District 1 Fire Chief said during a press conference. The blaze quickly became difficult and dangerous to fight due to the fire spreading onto building's bowstring truss roof, McDonough added.
"The fire got up in the trusses," McDonough said. "We needed to evacuate. It's one of the most dangerous fires we come across."
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Additionally, the fire took longer to fight due to the placement of the building.
"We had to protect the buildings on both sides," McDonough said, of the residential and commercial buildings surrounding the property.
According to McDonough, 32 fire companies, 100 firefighters and six hand lines were used.
"I can't say how it started, but it started in the rear, in the liquor store," McDonough said.
Just before 11:30 a.m., the Chicago Fire Department tweeted that the fire had been struck out.
The fire comes just one week after two Chicago firefighters died while fighting two separate fighters in different parts of the city.
