Cook County Circuit Court Clerk regrouping after fire
BY KARA SPAK AND MICHAEL LANSU Staff Reporters February 10, 2012 11:43PM
Benton Cook, left, is advised by a friend while standing outside his home on the 8800 block of S. Constance Ave. Saturday, Feb. 11, 2012, in Chicago. Cook and his wife, Cook County Circuit Court Clerk Dorothy Brown (not pictured), arrived Friday night to find their home on fire. No cause was determined as of Saturday morning. | John J. Kim~Sun-Times
Article Extras
Updated: February 11, 2012 12:22PM
Cook County Circuit Court Clerk Dorothy Brown, her husband and the couple’s two dogs are regrouping after a Friday night fire nearly destroyed their South Side home.
“It’s a huge loss for her and her husband but they carry on,” said Enza Raineri, Brown’s spokeswoman. “They have themselves, they’ve got their dogs.”
Brown and her husband were returning to their Calumet Heights home from a campaign event Friday night when they saw smoke billowing on their block. The fire started in the home’s basement, Raineri said, and fire officials are still determining the exact cause.
It wasn’t arson, Raineri said Saturday.
“I know everybody thinks about that because it’s campaign season,” she said.
The dogs, who were the only ones home at the time, managed to escape the fire unharmed. The first floor partially collapsed as the smoke and fire traveled up from the basement.
Raineri said Brown is in shock but wanted to thank the Chicago Fire and Police officials on the scene Friday night.
“She’s very grateful to the Chicago Fire Department for their quick response,” she said. “She’s happy to have her health and her husband and that’s the most important thing. She’s like everybody else who has gone through this. You have to regroup and carry on.”
Comments Click here to view or make a comment