Jacurion Lewis, a 2-year-old who lived in Chatham, Illinois, died on Jan. 25, 2020, after receiving critical injuries in a fire.
The fire started in a two-story apartment building on East 91st Street in the 700 block on Jan. 22. When the emergency services arrived, they transported Lewis to Comer Children’s Hospital. However, the examiners from the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office pronounced Lewis dead three days later.
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On Jan. 26, the medical examiners conducted an autopsy on Lewis’s body. The examination found that the child had received injuries and inhaled smoke, which contributed to his death.
The fire was an accident caused by a space heater that malfunctioned. However, according to firefighters, there were not sufficient fire alarms in the apartment building.
Only the second floor had working smoke detectors. Lewis was on the first floor, which did not have any fire alarms.
According to a spokesperson for the fire department, if the family had been alerted in time, they could have escaped before Lewis inhaled too much smoke.
A 94-year-old man was also injured in the fire, but his name was not released by the police department. It is unknown which floor this man was on at the time of the fire.
According to the police report, the man is in serious condition and suffered multiple burns. He was taken to the medical center at the University of Chicago.
Chatham firefighters passed out smoke detectors free of charge on the morning of Jan. 27.