POLICE AUDIO: “Central, [police supervisor] 1195 is on scene … I got one person down on the front lawn, nothing showing yet … the one on the front lawn claims the basement may be on fire. I don’t see anything showing yet.”
A reader wondered today where The Cardinal got information about a house fire on South Walnut Avenue Tuesday night. The reader, claiming to be Lee Anderson, writes that The Cardinal report Small Fire After Fireworks Or Pyrotechnical Material Set Off In House on South Walnut Ave, Arlington Heights was wrong. The Cardinal did not update information that the victim’s father transported the victim in his personal car because a decision was made to wait in case the police released a press statement about the investigation and circumstances involving the incident.
Police arrived on the scene and found one person down in the front yard. Apparently, while a police officer bravely went inside the house to check for more victims, the injured victim and his father took off to the hospital without waiting for firefighter/paramedics — whose sirens signaled their approach and immediate arrival. There’s no doubt that emergency care at the scene by paramedics is much preferred to rushing in a personal car without treatment and without pain relief for burns. Why did they suddenly leave with emergency personnel arriving on the scene? The 22-year-old victim’s flash burns on the upper legs and hands were serious enough to require transfer from Northwest Community Hospital to the Loyola University Medical Center Burn Center.
Lee Anderson, who claims he was there when it happened and failed to observe the victim on the front lawn, is critical that The Cardinal report was wrong. But as the police audio reveals, The Cardinal report was NOT wrong.
Lee Anderson chastised The Cardinal today with this message …
I don’t know where you got your information but “Arlington Heights police and firefighter/paramedics responded about 8:44 PM Tuesday to a report of a house fire in the 100 block of South Walnut Avenue. Police arrived first and reported that a male victim was lying in the front yard.” was wrong. I was there when it happened and the Daily Harold [sic] WAS CORRECT “The 22-year-old’s father took him to Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights, but he was later transferred to Loyola University Medical Center’s burn unit.” Your website is constantly making mistakes and posting false information. Get new reporters ..
Lee Anderson
From the previous article …
Arlington Heights Fire Department light trailer illuminates the scene while Cook County Bomb Squad investigators, Arlington Heights Police Department arson investigators and Arlington Heights Fire Department fire investigators go to work.
Arlington Heights police and firefighter/paramedics responded about 8:44 PM Tuesday to a report of a house fire in the 100 block of South Walnut Avenue. Police arrived first and reported that a male victim was lying in the front yard. Apparently a male resident of the house was working with some type of fireworks or pyrotechnical materials in the basement of the home, and was injured.
Light smoke came out of the house after firefighters ventilated the basement windows.
Several neighbors gathered near the scene and were concerned about the residents at the house, and were also concerned if there was still an explosion risk.
Although an explosion risk was not suspected, the Cook County Bomb Squad was called to the scene to check materials in the house just south of Sigwalt Street on the west side of Walnut Avenue.
Firefighter operations during arrival on the scene of a small basement fire, and investigation for hazard detection and the ruling out of criminal activity.
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Daily Harold…lol! Get new reporters. LOL! If this guy even knew.
Who is this Lee Anderson? From what I can tell, the Herald gets its news from the Cardinal website. The Cardinal gets its news by going out to the site.
I’ve been reading the Cardinal for several years now, and the Cardinal is always the first to report local news and accurate on every account. The Herald can only aspire to the same track record – and so far it is falling far short. A day late and 100 details missing.
I found out about this site from a friend who is a cop in AH. He said a lot of cops there check this site on their days off to see what’s going on. I’m guessing it’s pretty accurate if they use it.