Woman found dead after East Hyde Park apartment fire

A woman was found dead early Thursday after a fire was extinguished in an East Hyde Park neighborhood apartment on the South Side, fire officials said.

Firefighters responded to the blaze shortly before 5 a.m. in the seven-story apartment building in the 5400 block of South Cornell, said Chicago Fire Department Deputy District Chief Michael Del Greco.

The fire was contained to the seventh floor apartment and was extinguished within 30 minutes, he said.

The woman, thought to be in her 60s, was found near the couch in the apartment’s living room and was pronounced dead at the scene, Del Greco said. Her identity has not yet been released.

An autopsy Friday did not rule on the cause and manner of the woman’s death pending further studies, the Cook County medical examiner’s office said.

No other injuries were reported and none of the building’s other residents were displaced because of the fire, he said. Neighbors and first responders reported hearing smoke alarms come from the unit.

No foul play was suspected, Del Greco said. The cause of the blaze was under investigation.