Cellphone video posted to the Citizen app showed heavy smoke rising from North Riverside Park Mall on Thursday, and orders were issued to evacuate everyone inside the building as firefighters responded to the scene.
“I'm grateful they responded so quickly to this situation,” mall employee Beth Blasco said. “There's a lot of stores over there, so you never know what's going to happen.”
Blasco told NBC Chicago that she was settling into her job at Exclusive Shoes when she heard the commotion.
“I didn't know exactly,” she said. “I just heard screaming. A lot of screaming, like 'Get out! Get out!' So I thought maybe there was a shooting.”
She said she noticed smoke coming from the food court as she rushed out.
Firefighters responded to the mall near the intersection of Harlem Avenue and Cermak Road just after 11 a.m.
North Riverside Mayor Joseph Mengoni said the fire started in one of the restaurants in the food court.
“A grease fire broke out in one restaurant and it affected the restaurant next door,” Mengoni said.
Thick smoke filled the sky just an hour after the mall opened, and the mayor said the fire was limited to two restaurants.
“I never want to see that happen in my town,” he said. “Certainly, the smoke damage was significant.”
Shoppers and employees stood in the parking lot waiting to see if anyone was injured and whether the mall was safe to reopen, and Mengoni said cleanup efforts were underway in the food court to remove the smoke.
“It's good that everybody is safe, that's the most important thing,” Blasko said.
The mall has since reopened, although the food court will remain closed while the area continues to be cleaned.
