CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Two Chicago firefighters were briefly held captive in the basement of a South Side house until being rescued by fellow firefighters, Chicago police said.
It happened near 77th Street and Marshfield Avenue in the Auburn Gresham neighborhood.
Police said firefighters responded to a report of a car on fire in a garage. While there, the 47-year-old resident told a lieutenant and a battalion chief there was a gas smell in his basement.
When they went to check, he allegedly pointed a large knife at them and locked them in the basement, where the floor was covered in gasoline.
Firefighters eventually smashed the basement windows in order to free the pair, while others broke through the front door of the house.
Chicago police said first responders found the 47-year-old man barricaded in a bathroom, where he was threatening to hurt himself with two knives. A loaded gun was also reported found in plain view in the home.
The man was taken to a hospital to be checked out. At this point, he has not been charged with anything.
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