DeKalb resident, cat injured in Kimberly West Apartment complex fire

DeKALB – A woman and her cat were taken to nearby hospitals after an apartment fire in the Kimberly West Apartment complex on DeKalb’s north side Wednesday evening, confirmed Fire Chief Mike Thomas.

The woman and two other residents were displaced after their apartments were deemed uninhabitable due to the fire, according to the DeKalb Fire Department.

Firefighters responded to reports of a structure fire at the complex in the 800 block of Kimberly Drive about 5 p.m. Wednesday, Thomas said. The fire, which investigators believe started in the kitchen of an upstairs apartment on the building’s west side, was brought under control in about a half hour. Two other apartments also sustained water damage, Thomas said.

When crews arrived, they reported no fire was showing. However, according to DeKalb fire officials, residents told firefighters there was fire inside the building on the second floor. Firefighters found an unresponsive woman inside.

The woman and a cat were evacuated from the apartment when crews arrived, which was filled with heavy smoke, Thomas said. Paramedics took the woman to Northwestern Medicine Kishwaukee Hospital to be treated for smoke inhalation. The cat was taken to Malta Veterinary Hospital.

Emma Dosset lives on the second floor of the east side of the apartment building and said she evacuated when she heard the alarms sound.

“When I got outside, there was thick black smoke coming from that busted out window,” Dosset said, pointing to a third floor window on the south side of the building.

First responders asked several residents in adjacent apartments in the building to shelter in place while crews cleared the area, and remain inside their apartments while the fire was extinguished.

Dosset said she saw paramedics trying to resuscitate the cat before it was taken to the hospital.

DeKalb police issued a citywide emergency alert asking residents to avoid the area Wednesday. A portion of Kimberly Drive remained blocked off as of 6:30 p.m. Police issued a second alert shortly after stating that the road was cleared for traffic.

According to a news release from the DeKalb Fire Department, damages are estimated to cost about $50,000.

Crews from Malta, Maple Park, Elburn, Hinkley, Cortland and Burlington assisted, along with DeKalb police.

Thomas said the source of the fire still is under investigation.

This story was updated at 8:25 p.m. June 8, 2022 with additional information from witnesses at the fire. This story was updated agin at 9:15 p.m. June 8, 2022 with additional information released by the DeKalb Fire Department.