Five Ambulances Sent to Portage Park House Fire in Chicago

Five ambulances were dispatched to a house fire in Chicago’s Portage Park neighborhood early Monday, as emergency crews responded to the scene.

The fire broke out at a two-and-a-half-story wood-frame home in the 4000 block of North Austin Avenue, between Belle Plaine Avenue and Irving Park Road.

An Emergency Medical Services Plan 1 was activated, automatically sending five ambulances to the incident.

People were seen being taken away on stretchers, although officials had not immediately released confirmed details about the number or severity of injuries.

By around 6:30 a.m., firefighters had deployed a tower ladder and were conducting mechanical or hydraulic ventilation as crews continued working at the property.

The cause of the fire was not immediately known.