Excerpts from the ChicagoTribune.com:

The two people who died in a hazardous materials emergency near Des Plaines have been identified as two men, one 83 and the other 53, authorities said Friday morning.

The Cook County medical examiner’s office listed their names as Hong Kyqkim, 53, and John Tae Kim, 83. They both lived in the townhouse in the 9400 block of Harrison Street where the emergency was called around 3:30 p.m. Thursday.

A woman in the home was taken to a hospital in critical condition, and four sheriff’s deputies who responded to the call experienced respiratory “difficulties” and were treated at a hospital and released, authorities said.

A relative of the victims called 911 to report three people in distress Thursday afternoon. The two men were dead on the scene, according to Richard Dobrowski, chief of the North Maine Fire Protection District.

The woman in the home was listed in critical condition Thursday night, according to a sheriff’s office spokeswoman.

Authorities evacuated the townhouse complex but later allowed most residents to return and reopened the area to traffic. The complex is near Potter Road in unincorporated Maine Township, near Apollo School.

Authorities have not elaborated on the nature of the hazardous materials emergency. Authorities said oxygen levels in the air appeared to be normal, and nothing unusual was detected in the water supply.

Thursday evening, after ruling out certain contaminants, crews were allowed back into the townhome without full protective gear, though residents of three units in the same building were still kept out of their homes.

Tim Olk photo

Tim Olk photo

Tim Olk photo

Tim Olk photo

Tim Olk photo

Tags: 2 dead at hazardous materials incident near Des plaines, firefighters decon at haz mat incident, firemen in haz mat suits, Haz Mat incident, hazardous materials incident near Des Plaines, North Maine Fire Protection District Fire Chief Richard Dobrowski, Tim Olk