Excerpts from the DailyHerald.com:

A blaze that killed a Des Plaines woman and her four children one year ago was caused by two electrical cords that had been improperly altered and connected. One cord was part of a space heater that had been the focus of the investigation from the start. The other was a heavy-duty extension cord plugged into a wall outlet. The space heater was inside the family’s second-floor apartment near a stairway. The extension cord was plugged into an outlet in the kitchen.

The fire occurred in the apartment building on the 700 block of West Oakton Street. The building originally was a single-family house but had been converted into apartments. Killed in the Jan. 27, 2021, blaze were Cithlaly Zamudio, 25, and daughters Renata Espinosa, 6, Genesis Espinosa, 5, Allison Espinosa, 3, and Grace Espinosa, 1.

The fire, which began about 10 a.m., trapped the victims inside because there was no safe exit other than the stairs. Two other occupants of the building got out safely with help from police and a passerby.

Forensic electrical engineers hired by an insurance company and an attorney for the family’s estate examined the building and debris inside in June as part of their investigations. They concluded the spliced cords caused the fire. As manufactured, the male end of the heater’s electrical cord and the female end of the extension cord didn’t match. The ends had been cut off so the wires inside the cords could be spliced.

The resulting electrical flash could be seen in surveillance video from a Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago facility across the street from the family’s home.

Strings of Christmas lights inside the apartment were improperly wired to each other, too, but they likely weren’t to blame for the fire.

The building where the fire occurred remains unoccupied and boarded up.

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Excerpts from Fox32chicago.com:

A fire in Des Plaines that killed four children and their mother in January likely started at least seven minutes before anyone called 911. Firefighters were challenged by a rapidly evolving scene that included more victims than initially expected and fire blocking the only stairwell to the family’s apartment, according to a 43-page report released Tuesday by the Des Plaines Fire Department that provides a timeline and video of the city’s response to the blaze at 714 W. Oakton St.

The cause of the Jan. 27 fire remains undetermined, but the report said the blaze began at the top of the only stairwell leading to the second-floor apartment where the family was found. A space heater and extension cord were found in the area. The apartment had a second exit — a small balcony — but it didn’t have stairs to the ground level, the report states.

According to a timeline of events, surveillance video shows a bright flash of light in the second-floor window at 10:03 a.m., indicting a possible fire. It wasn’t until 10:10 a.m. that a 911 call was received, and it took another two minutes until the caller could provide an address.

A Des Plaines police officer was the first to arrive, at 10:16 a.m., and survey the building and help remove two people safely from the building. An ambulance arrived at 10:17 a.m., and the first fire engine arrived at 10:19 a.m.

Firefighters, hearing that two children may be trapped on the second floor, encountered significant smoke and fire, and knocked down flames with a hose, the report states. Within seconds, crews found the first victim in a bedroom and four others in another room.

The fatalities were Cythaly Zamodio, 25, and her daughters: Grace Espinosa, 1; Allizon V. Espinosa, 3; Genesis A. Espinosa, 5; and Renata P. Espinosa, 6. At the time, a neighbor said their father was work during the fire.

The report states that the department’s response to the fire satisfied standards set by the National Fire Protection Association and Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

“Firefighters made a valiant effort to give those trapped a chance to survive by locating them and removing them from the hazardous conditions,” the report states. “The efforts of all those involved are to be commended.”

Tags: 5 dead after Des Plaines house fire, chicagoareafire.com, Chicagoareafire.com/blog, Des Plaines Fire Department, fatal fire in Des Plaines, four young children and one adult perish in house fire, op-ed from the Journal Topics about Des Plaines Fire Department staffing