CHICAGO — A horrific fire that tore through a three-story apartment building in the Austin neighborhood early Thursday morning killed four people, including a 5-year-old boy, a pregnant woman, and a local newspaper editor — with officials now saying the blaze may have been intentionally set using Molotov cocktails during a domestic dispute.
The fire broke out around 2 a.m. at a large building in the 5200 block of West North Avenue, engulfing the structure in flames so rapidly that multiple residents had to be rescued from upper floors by ladder. The Chicago Fire Department described the fire’s spread as “extremely rapid,” destroying the rear stairwells and consuming the interior before crews could contain it.
Alderwoman: Attack Stemmed From Domestic Violence
Ald. Emma Mitts (37th) told the Sun-Times that a man allegedly threw two Molotov cocktails into the building — one through the front, and another at the back entrance — following an argument with someone inside the building.
“They had been arguing earlier and, the next thing you know, he was there throwing Molotov cocktails,” Mitts said, calling the situation “disturbing and devastating.”…