A deadly Kenwood high-rise fire was caused by careless use of smoking materials, the Chicago Fire Department said Thursday.
One woman died and nine others were hurt in the incident, including a firefighter, at an apartment building on South Lake Park Avenue Wednesday morning.
CFD said smoking materials ignited combustibles in a bedroom and ruled the fire an accident. A smoke detector was in the residence but was not working, CFD said.
The fire broke out in the 15th floor of the 25-story Harper Square Co-Op building in the 4800-block of South Lake Park Avenue just after 10 a.m. Wednesday.
Wind caused the fire to spread very quickly, going vertically from floor to floor all the way up to the 24th floor.