4-year-old girl killed, infant among 3 hurt in Aurora house fire

A 4-year-old girl died and three other people were injured, including a 5-month-old girl, in a three-alarm house fire Wednesday afternoon in west suburban Aurora.

Just before 2 p.m., firefighters responded to the blaze at a 4-unit townhouse in the 1800 block of Carnation Court and noticed a “large plume of smoke from several blocks away,” according to the Aurora Fire Department.

When fire crews arrived, they learned the 4-year-old was trapped inside the burning home, the fire department said. After encountering heavy smoke and fire, crews were forced to battle the blaze from outside before entering the home.

The young girl was later found dead at the scene, the fire department said.

The infant and a 25-year-old woman were outside the home when fire crews showed up. They both suffered smoke inhalation and burns and were rushed to a local hospital before being airlifted to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood for further treatment, the fire department said.

Additionally, a firefighter who was injured was treated and released from a hospital, the fire department said.

The blaze started in a first-floor living room and caused an estimated $500,000 in damages, the fire department said. The building was deemed uninhabitable.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.