Mother, son die in Cicero fire; 2 kids hurt
October 4, 2006
FROM STNG WIRE REPORTS
A fire in the first-floor bedroom of a bungalow in Cicero killied a 41-year-old mother and her 6-year-old son and hospitalized two children early Wednesday. Candles were found in the bedroom, according to town officials.
The dead were identified as Raquel Perez and Cesar Camacho, of the 1800 block of South 57th Avenue, Cicero, according to a Cook County Medical Examiner’s office spokesman. Perez was pronounced dead at 3:55 a.m. at the Stein Institute, while Cesar was pronounced dead there at 3:48 a.m., the spokesman said.
The Cicero Fire Department responded to the fire at a two-story frame bungalow at the 1800 block of South 57th Avenue at 12:23 a.m., Cicero police Cmdr. David Ciancio said.
“There were candles in the bedroom; whether or not they had anything to do with starting the fire is unclear,’’ Cicero town spokesman Dan Proft said. Raquel Perez had at least one other son living there who escaped safely, said Proft.
He said 12 people -- six adults and six minors -- were living in the home, including the mother and son who were killed. When firefighters arrived, everyone had gotten out except the mother and son, who were found in a first-floor bedroom, said Proft. Two children are being treated at MacNeal Hospital in Berwyn, suffering from smoke inhalation, said Proft. Their conditions were not life-threatening, he said.
The 12 residents who lived there weren't all related, Proft said.
He said a smoke detector closest to the bedroom where the fire began didn't have batteries.
There was another smoke detector in the basement that also had no batteries, but a working smoke detector on the second floor alerted the others, said Proft.
The bedroom where the mother and son were found was gutted by the fire, and there was also damage to the adjacent kitchen, said Proft.
As of 8 a.m., Proft said the cause of the fire wasn't determined.
Catholic Charities is helping the surviving residents find a place to stay.
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