Photos: Firefighters battle blaze at freezing Chicago warehouse

It was one of the biggest fires in Chicago in years – and the freezing conditions made it extra difficult for firefighters. Here’s what happened.

IT WAS ONE of the biggest fires in Chicago in years.

More than 170 firefighters were called to the scene on the south side of Chicago last night where a warehouse was on fire. However the freezing cold – the temperature has dropped as low as – 8 in Chicago this week – made the task extra difficult.

Firefighters’ equipment froze and icicles formed on the hoses as they tried to extinguish the blaze. The ice added extra weight to the ladders used to get close to the building. The warehouse itself ended up covered in ice as the liquid used to extinguish the fire froze, encasing the entire building.

These dramatic photographs show firefighters at the scene, and how the building looked today.

(Photos: AP Photo/M. Spencer Green, AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

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