CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- An off-duty Lisle-Woodridge firefighter rescued three people - two senior citizens and their grandson - Wednesday from a burning home in west suburban Lisle.
At 6:20 a.m., a passerby alerted the fire department to a structure fire in the 5600 block of River Drive, according to a statement from the Lisle-Woodridge Fire District. Firefighters en route learned that three people may still be inside. When they arrived at 6:24 a.m., they reported heavy fire in the single-family home.
According to Fire Chief Keith Krestan, Firefighter First Class Andy Orth was off-duty on Wednesday morning and heading to work after working out when he spotted smoke from a fire on River Road.
The chief said Orth banged on a couple of doors and did not get any response. Then, he saw the silhouette of a person in the living room and went back to the first door and forced his way in, telling the people there, "You've got to get out of the house."
With the help of a DuPage County Sheriff's deputy, Orth got the three people to safety, who did not know the home was on fire. They were all treated and released at the scene.
Lisle-Woodridge Fire District Chief Keith Krestan said the house did not have any working smoke detectors and that, "without him doing what he did, this may not have been such a good outcome."
To make matters more challenging, Chief Krestan said the house where the fire was, was down a dead-end street that's very near the DuPage River. While the firefighters were pouring water on the detached garage where the fire began and the house where it had spread, the river kept encroaching on them.
"We quickly realized we needed to keep moving vehicles away and out of that street because the water was rising very quickly," the chief said.
Chief Krestan the three people who were rescued are now staying with relatives.
No civilians or firefighters were injured, officials said. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.
Chief Krestan said Firefighter Orth has been with the department for more than 20 years and will be recognized in some way in the future.