Chicago firefighter’s 2 kids die after fire claims wife, son
CHICAGO (AP) — A Chicago firefighter’s two remaining children have died days after a fire at the family’s Northwest Side home also fatally injured his wife and 7-year-old son, authorities said.
The Cook County medical examiner’s office said firefighter Walter Stewart’s 2-year-old son, Emory Day-Stewart, and his 9-year-old daughter, Autumn Day-Stewart, died Saturday and Friday, respectively, from injuries related to smoke inhalation, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.
Stewart’s wife, Summer Day-Stewart, 36, died Thursday, and their son, Ezra Stewart, 7, died Wednesday.
She and the three children were rescued Tuesday night from the family’s burning home in the Montclare neighborhood and rushed to hospitals with smoke inhalation, officials said.
Stewart was not part of the fire crew that responded to the fire, but when he heard the address of the fire over radio dispatch, he went to the scene and gave his wife CPR, Chicago Fire Department spokesperson Larry Langford said.
The fire began in the home’s kitchen but its cause remained under investigation, he said.
The Chicago Fire Department is raising money to help Stewart’s family face the “unspeakable tragedy” through its charity, Ignite the Spirit.
