March 10--A man died and his mother was hospitlized after a fifth-floor fire in a 44-unit apartment building on the Northwest Side early Saturday morning, according to authorities.
The fire on the 6400 block of West Belle Plaine Avenue was first reported about 2 a.m., police said.
The man who died, 49, lived in the apartment building, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office. It's not clear if his family knows of his death.
He was pronounced dead at 3 a.m. at Resurrection Medical Center, a spokeswoman for the medical examiner said.
A woman, believed to be his mother, was taken in serious-to-critical condition to Our Lady of the Resurrection Medical Center, a Chicago Fire Department spokesman said.
Warming buses were at the scene while firefighters check the building to measure smoke and water damage, police said.
It's not clear what caused the fire or how many people were displaced.
Responding firefighters ordered an Emergency Medical Services Plan 1, which brings five extra ambulances to the scene.
The plan was a precaution because of the building's size but firefighters didn't need an additional alarm to combat the blaze.
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