6 Children Die in Chicago Apartment Fire

[JI7]

no electricity and no smoke detector. this could have been avoided. anyone know the details of the area ? is it a poor area ?



<A candle in an apartment without electricity was believed to have caused one of the city's deadliest and most heartbreaking fires in years, a blaze Sunday that killed six children ages 3 to 14, some of whom screamed "we're burning" as neighbors watched helplessly.

The third-floor, three-bedroom apartment on the city's North Side also had no smoke detector, said visibly shaken Fire Commissioner Raymond Orozco.

Derrell Dixon said two children appeared at a window and he and several other neighbors held up a blanket, trying unsuccessfully to get the youngsters to jump to safety.

"The kids were screaming and screaming 'Help! Help! We're burning, we're burning,'" said Dixon, 22, who said he saw firefighters rescue one of the children with a ladder.

Al Tillman, 32, was visiting a friend in the area when he heard the children yelling for help. He ran up to the third floor and crawled into the smoke-filled apartment, where he managed to grab a child's arm. He dragged the boy outside and handed him to paramedics.

"I'm shaken up because the other children didn't make it," Tillman said. "I only heard one child. I wish I could have saved the others.">


http://www.helenair.com/articles/2006/09/04/ap/headlines/d8jtnse00.txt

[Erika]

1. No electricity for a month?

How low have we sunk that we offer huge $ to the rich out of our tax base, and let the poor suffer?

We should be ashamed.

[ninkasi]

9. I am ashamed, as an American citizen

that tragedies like this are allowed to happen. The present administration coddles and pampers the already wealthy, and looks with disdain on those of us who do not have impressive bank accounts, or portfolios. The thought of these poor children burning will haunt me for many days to come.

Erika, you are so right when you point out "How low have we sunk that we offer huge $ to the rich out of our tax base, and let the poor suffer?"

We have sunk to the very depths of humanity if we continue to let things like this happen. A poor person, a person of another race, another nationality, is entitled to exactly the same rights that we claim for ourselves.

Some on the religious right are able to detach themselves from politics right before the elections, because they want to claim for themselves the right to discard any ideas they find immoral. Immorality, to them, could be something as simple as a woman agonizing over whether to have an abortion, or as simple as a person's right to retreat from violence, and a preference to work things out through dialog.

This malignancy on our presidency, and on our govern emt, needs to be cut out peacefully and legally, or we are subjected to another regime of greed and corruption. None of us here want that.

[ikojo]

16. I've read posts on DU where people look with

disdain upon those who don't have six months of living expenses in the bank. It's as if everyone makes a lot of money and can save every penny.

[Retired AF Dem]

19. Ummm this is Chicago

Democrat run and controlled. I can't stand Bush but he had nothing to do with this.

[Benfea]

23. Yes and no.

Bush's energy policy is indirectly responsible for the increase in energy prices.

[CC]

2. I don't know anything about the area but

I do see this happening more often in the near future all over. Here electric rates went up 72% percent June 1st. Those barely making it can't afford the increase so the power is shut off. Add to that the cost to get to work and well those on the edge are being pushed over, hard. I dread winter with the increase in heating cost along with the increase in electric.

[Erika]

4. How sad for our needy

The GOP have literally thrown them to the wolves to give the rich additional breaks. So much for conservative compassion.

This is our future? We better get rid of the GOP as soon as possible.

[CC]

5. Not just the needy, but those that were doing ok so

they thought. The first we will hear about is the needy but those that were border line are fast becoming the needy. There is no safety net for anyone that isn't uber rich anymore.

[JI7]

7. based on what i saw on tv, it didn't really look like a poor area

that's why i wondered. but then again i'm not familiar with Chicago and just basing it on the condition of buildings and the environment outside.

i mean, even those who are poor should have electricity so it shouldn't really be an issue.

i agree about the people being borderline between getting by and falling into poverty.

[CC]

10. I can understand your asking

about the area. I wondered too. I am in MD and don't know about there but it did reinforce things I have been concerned about since the rate increase here. Then I got to thinking about the fires every winter with the space heaters and candles and well I really dread this winter. Except for a week we have had a mild summer but I know a lot of people looking at getting their power shut off if they can't come up with big bucks soon. Between the rate increase and triple cost of getting to work winter is looking scary. On top of that many of the so called middle class won't have the money to donate to heating funds they might of for the same reasons. Personally we will be ok but we have been there done that and my heart aches for those that will have to choose between one evil or another because of the repukes in DC.

[JI7]

11. i didn't even think of winter until now

i was surprised these people didn't have electricity . i probably shouldn't have been considering all the trouble people are going through. but these type of things really show the personal side of the problems we are facing.

i'm in Southern California so it wont be too bad. but i can't imagine getting through winter in Chicago without electricity.

[cboy4]

3. Why did I immediately know they were poor and black when I heard

about this.

How awful.

[ovidsen]

13. They were poor and Mexican

Not that it makes a difference....

[cboy4]

14. Thanks for the correction . . . still gut-wrenching

none-the-less.

[malaise]

15. They were poor

How sad.

[speedoo]

6. Heartbreaking and infuriating.

God bless those kids, may they rest in peace.

And may all Bush republicans burn in hell.

It was on the north side, not generally a lot of poverty there. Far more poverty on the south side.

[Erika]

8. It's a shame those kids died

in our country. Where are all the pro-lifers? They exited when their $ might be needed. What happened to their Christianity?

[ovidsen]

12. Not a terrible neighborhood

Buzz words like "working class" or "changing" might be used to describe it. Lots of Hispanic immigrants. From what I understand, the mother of the victims didn't understand English... and the firefighters didn't speak Spanish.

[datasuspect]

17. west rogers park?

or closer to the lake?

that area was "changing" at least 10 years ago. it seems to be in a pepetual state of flux.

[ovidsen]

25. In between the Lake and the Howard L

Maybe a 15 minute walk to the Rogers Avenue Beach.

I haven't been there in years, and it was a "changing" neighborhood then. I've lived in worse places; but I've lived in better, too.

It's just a horrible shame that this happened.

[Cobalt Violet]

18. It makes me fear for the 2 people I personally know who are without ...

Electricity,with no hope of beening able to pay of past due bills. And they too are using candles. It's getting so hopeless for people. This whole event doesn't suprise me at all. I think it's going to get a lot worse.

[Cerridwen]

20. Death by poverty.

``At this festive season of the year, Mr Scrooge,'' said the gentleman, taking up a pen, ``it is more than usually desirable that we should make some slight provision for the Poor and destitute, who suffer greatly at the present time. Many thousands are in want of common necessaries; hundreds of thousands are in want of common comforts, sir.''

``Are there no prisons?'' asked Scrooge.

``Plenty of prisons,'' said the gentleman, laying down the pen again.

``And the Union workhouses?'' demanded Scrooge. ``Are they still in operation?''

``They are. Still,'' returned the gentleman, `` I wish I could say they were not.''

``The Treadmill and the Poor Law are in full vigour, then?'' said Scrooge.

``Both very busy, sir.''

``Oh! I was afraid, from what you said at first, that something had occurred to stop them in their useful course,'' said Scrooge. ``I'm very glad to hear it.''

How long now? How much longer until the ruling elite begin using these arguments in the open?

[undeterred]

21. Using a candle

This is just too sad.

[Benfea]

22. "We will make electricity so cheap only the rich will burn candles!"

--Thomas Alva Edison

How sad that we seem to be returning to the days when electricity is expensive and the poor use candles. The others in this thread are right: as energy prices rise, we will see more and more of this.

[Annces]

24. Chicago has lots of ghettos and housing projects , though more on

the South Side of Chicago.

[Nikia]

26. It doesn't have to be a "poor" area for this to have happened

I don't know if this woman had a partner or if the father gave any support, but she had 7 children. She may have had a job and wanted to live somewhere decent for her children. That may have cost a great deal of her income. Supporting that many people costs a fair amount. She may have had unexpected expenses. Choosing to give her children enough to eat or buy school supplies instead of paying the electric bill may have seemed like a good idea at the time.