Christmas Day Fire At Palos Hills Apartment Displaces 56 People

PALOS HILLS, IL — Residents fled their smoke-filled units after a fire broke out at an apartment-condominium building early Christmas morning in Palos Hills. As many as 30 families were displaced, amounting to 56 people.

The fire is believed to have started in the laundry room in the multi-unit building in the 9900 block of 84th Terrace, according to news reports. Residents fled the building without coats and carrying their pets. It is not known if there were injuries. A resident told CBS2 that every unit had smoke inside it.

A displaced resident of the building commented on neighborhood social media that her family had just moved into the building in mid-December. The woman said that she and her family were staying at a hotel.

“Please keep all of us in your thoughts and prayers, we don’t know when we’ll be able to get back to some sort of normalcy,” the woman posted on the Palos Hills Community Facebook group. “Broke my heart to be unable to spend Christmas morning with our daughter in our new place.”

American Red Cross volunteers were at the scene assisting families forced out of their building, providing families with a hot meal Friday evening. The Red Cross is providing immediate assistance to those affected, including a safe place to stay, health and mental health services, information about recovery and meals.

Residents impacted by the fire and need assistance are to the Red Cross dispatch line at 1-877-597-0747.