April 18--A young boy was killed and his mother was critically injured in a fire at an apartment building Saturday morning in southwest suburban Crest Hill.
The blaze started about 3:30 a.m. at an apartment on a second floor of a building in the 1800 block of Arbor Lane, said Deputy Chief Paul Hertzmann of the Lockport Township Fire Protection District.
The firefighters rescued a woman and a child from the fire, which was contained to one apartment in the 36-unit building, Hertzmann said.
The child was taken to Presence St. Joseph Medical Center in Joilet.
The Will County coroner's office identified the child as Nathaniel Dixon, age 1, of the 1800 block of Arbor Lane, who was pronounced dead at 4:16 a.m. Saturday. Autopsy results indicate that he died of smoke inhalation, but final cause and manner of death are pending further investigation.
The woman is Nathaniel's mother, according to Lockport Township Fire Chief David Skoryi. After the woman, who was in her early 30s, was also taken to St. Joseph, she was later airlifted to a burn center, Hertzmann said. She was listed in critical condition.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation, but the kitchen appears to the area of origin, the chief said.
The fire was struck about 3:45 a.m. No one else was injured, and no one was displaced as a result of the blaze, Hertzmann said.
The fire is still under investigation.
