Eva Imoniruwe wrapped up her Friday performance in “The Gospel at Colonus” at the Court Theatre in Chicago and was talking with audience members when her brother pulled her aside with serious news.
He told her that her Park Forest home was on fire.
“I was on stage when the fire began,” Imoniruwe said. “I just broke down. People saw me fall apart.”
Imoniruwe, who lived in the home with her four teenage children for six months, said she rushed home to find firefighters still working to put out the fire.
Firefighters were called at 9 p.m. Friday to the 0-100 block of Indianwood Boulevard, and the fire quickly spread throughout the eight-unit town home, according to a news release from the Park Forest Police Department.
Imoniruwe said her eldest son, who is 20, was the only one of her family home. He was in the basement playing video games with headphones, she said.
“They were able to get him out, thankfully,” Imoniruwe said.
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Because he was wearing headphones, Imoniruwe said her son didn’t hear the fire alarms going off. Two police officers escorted him out of the house, according to the release and Imoniruwe.
Everyone inside the building was safely evacuated and no injuries were reported, according to the release. Imoniruwe said she’s glad no one was injured or killed, but the situation is still “heartbreaking.”
Michael Broughton said he was watching TV Friday when firefighters knocked on the door.
“Then I looked outside at the porch and saw fire come out the window,” Broughton said.
Broughton, who has lived there for about 1 1/2 years with his wife and 8-year-old daughter, said the roof of his unit caught on fire. While the family was able to take some of their possession, they were told they can’t live in the home, he said.
Since the fire, Broughton said he and his family have been staying with his mother in Crete as they look for somewhere else to live.
Broughton said he won’t forget watching his home burn.
“I honestly thought that was it. It was stressful,” Broughton said.
Imoniruwe said the fire started in her family’s unit and spread. A preliminary investigation found the fire was caused by multiple electronics being plugged into a power strip, according to the release.
Since the fire, Imoniruwe said her family has been staying at a hotel in Chicago. Imoniruwe’s friends started a GoFundMe page to raise money for the family.
“We’re still trying to figure out where to go long term,” Imoniruwe said.