Man found dead after Lawndale fire, porch collapse; Woman, 2 CPD officers injured

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A man was found dead after a fire in the Lawndale that also left a woman critically injured Wednesday morning, the Chicago Fire Department said.

Two Chicago police officers were also injured after a porch collapsed.

The fire occurred at about 1:15 a.m. at a home in the 1200-block of South Kedvale Avenue, police said.

"Flames coming out the roof, and I said, 'oh my god!'" neighbor Sylvester Jackson said.

The home has been knocked down and a fence has gone up. Crews were able to safely go through the rubble when they made the sad discovery.

A man in his 30s who lived with his mother was located in what was left of this single family home that caught fire early Wednesday morning in the Lawndale neighborhood.

Fire officials were not able to go inside earlier since there were walls that could collapse, so demolition crews had to come and bring the structure down. That ultimately allowed them to be able to look.

Family identified the victim as Carlos Street who was in his 30s. They said he had autism. ...

His uncle Joseph Johnson came to the scene Wednesday morning hoping his nephew could be located. He was at the scene when his nephew was found.

"He's autistic, so I'm thinking he might have wandered off or something, you know, but I've been out here all morning and for me to hear this news is crushing. My whole family is crushed, it hurts," Johnson said. "I want people to know he was a sweet soul and pray for my family, really, because everybody is hurting behind this loss."

Chicago Fire Department officials give an update on a Lawndale fire that injured two police officers and a 75-year-old woman.

While Carlos did not make it out of the house, his 75-year-old mother Dessie Street did. She was transported to the hospital in critical condition.

"She's a seamstress," Jackson said. "It seems like everybody in the neighborhood comes to her, because she's evidently good at what she do."

The fire started at around 1:20 a.m. Police said two officers from the 10th District got there before fire crews arrived and tried to warn people inside, but the porch collapsed on at least one of them.

The two officers were hurt but are expected to be OK.

An investigation into the cause of the fire is underway.