Excerpts from the journal-topics.com:
The Des Plaines Fire Department responded to a single-family home just south of Oakton Street at 3:14 p.m. Tuesday afternoon and arrived to find heavy smoke coming out of the home. The only occupant had escaped unharmed. Crews from multiple area departments assisted at the scene while also battling 95-degree heat.
After the blaze at 1817 Lee St., fire officials pointed to an already problematic window air conditioner unit plugged into an extension cord as the cause of the fire.
The fire department’s investigation concluded that the fire started at the center and rear rooms of the house. At one point, a power line burned away from its connection to the home, creating an electrical hazard as the live power line fell in the backyard and across a metal fence.
The Red Cross was contacted to help the resident with relocation from the now-uninhabitable home, with damage estimates over $100,000.
