Two homes destroyed in early morning fire on Chicago's Northwest Side

Fire spreads to two houses in Jefferson Park

Chicago fire crews have spent the early morning dealing with a house fire on the Northwest Side.

CHICAGO - Two houses were destroyed in an early morning fire Tuesday in the Jefferson Park neighborhood, but no injuries were reported, according to Chicago fire officials.

What we know:

Fire crews responded around 11 p.m. to the 5400 block of West Windsor Avenue, where they found one house fully engulfed in flames. That home was under renovation and unoccupied at the time of the fire, officials said.

The blaze quickly spread to a neighboring house, where a man and his two children were able to escape safely. Both homes are considered total losses.

Video from the scene showed flames shooting through the roof of the first house and heavy smoke as firefighters worked to contain the blaze. Neighbors reported hearing a loud noise prior to the fire, possibly an explosion, though that has not been confirmed. 

The cause of the fire remains under investigation. The Chicago Fire Department has not released further details.

What they're saying:

"We saw all the smoke at the end of the block, so that's not normal," neighbor Ronald Pertinac said. "When I got here, it was totally engulfed this first home. It was really bad."