All three women were discovered unresponsive in the Rogers Park building, located in the 7400 block of North Rogers Avenue, Chicago police said. The first woman, 67 years old, was found at about 11:11 a.m. The second woman, 75 years old, was found three hours later, at about 2:11 p.m. The third woman, reported to be approximately 70 years old, was found at about 7:00 p.m. Each woman was pronounced dead on the scene.
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The cause and manner of death will be determined by the medical examiner, but foul play is not suspected at this time, police said.
The Chicago Fire Department reported that the temperature inside the building had decreased at 8:56 p.m. CFD said it is ventilating and blowing cool air inside to help facilitate a cool-down process.
Alderwoman Maria Hadden of the 49th Ward said residents had complained to her that the air conditioning wasn't on during the hot days this past week. She said the staff told her a city ordinance prevented them from turning on the air conditioning. Hadden said that's not true.
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A spokesperson for Mayor Lori Lightfoot's office released the following statement:
"Earlier today, the City of Chicago responded to calls for service that led to the discovery of fatalities in the same residential building. Currently, city representatives from Fire, Buildings, Department of Family and Support Services, and others are on the scene to assist the residents. A unit-by-unit well-being check is in progress by the Chicago Fire Department and city representatives are monitoring building management in switching over the air conditioning for the building. In addition, a cooling bus is available to residents. The investigation into the cause of death remains ongoing. We will continue taking the necessary measures to make sure the residents of the buildings are safe, and we will make sure that building management owns responsibility for the care of its residents. We will provide a further update when more information becomes available. If any residents are experiencing uncomfortably warm temperatures in their buildings, they should call 311, and building management and the City will respond."
Police did not provide further information about the incidents.