Man helps rescue elderly neighbor from Little Village fire that injured 2

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Two people were hurt in a fire early Wednesday morning on Chicago's Southwest Side.

The blaze broke out around 3 a.m. in the 2600-block of West 24th Street in the city's Little Village neighborhood. When firefighters arrived, the apartment building was fully engulfed, with flames shooting out of the roof and the back.

Neighbors said the landlord of the building rushed inside to help rescue two people, who were transported to the hospital in serious condition.

Witnesses said the fire spread quickly. It spread to homes on both sides. The street was filled with smoke as neighbors watched the structure burn.

Guillermo Valle, who lived in one of the neighboring homes that caught fire, evacuated his home with his grandfather and two dogs. When he stepped outside, he saw flames bursting out of the building where the fire originated.

Valle said he then went to the blazing building to help an elderly man who lived in the building get out safely.

The fire was extinguished by around 2:40 a.m. The cause is under investigation.

The Sun-Times Media Wire contributed to this report.