STERLING, Ill. — A rapid house fire early Monday morning left one Sterling resident dead and another in critical condition.
Sterling and Rock Falls fire departments responded to a two-story house fire at about 3 a.m. Monday, Sept. 27 on the 1400 block of Johnson Avenue, according to spokesperson David Northcutt from the Sterling Fire Department.
The fire started in the front of the home, according to a news release from Sterling Fire, and quickly swallowed the entire 1st floor in its flames. Firefighters were able to enter through a window and get 71-year-old Timothy Aurand out of a bedroom where he was trapped.
Crews were fighting flames at the scene of the fire for nearly 5 hours.
Timothy Aurand was transported to airlifted to a nearby hospital, police said, where he ultimately died from his injuries.
A woman also escaped from the burning home. She was transported to a nearby hospital to be treated. According to police, she was in critical condition.
The cause of the fire was under investigation as of Monday morning.