(Above) Bill Edlebeck snapped this photo of Marina City residents crowded into the west tower lobby Sunday evening after being told to leave their condo units and not use the elevators. (Click on images to view larger versions.)

January 17, 2016 – In the circular hallways of Marina City’s west tower, fire alarms blared and strobe lights flashed Sunday evening as residents walked down dozens of floors during an evacuation due to a small fire.

Chicago Fire Department is still investigating the cause of the fire in a unit on the 55th floor of the west tower. A spokesperson for CFD says it may have been an electrical fire but it was “a minor incident” with “very, very, very light smoke.”

Fire vehicles lined North Dearborn Street on the west side of Marina City at about 9 p.m. on Sunday.

“The in-unit address systems started blaring an ear-splitting siren with a pre-recorded message that everyone has to leave and don’t use the elevators,” recalled west tower resident Lynn Becker. “Stairways were jammed and much confusion reigned.”

(Left) Residents walk down narrow stairways. Photo by Bill Edlebeck.

(Right) Chicago fire fighters in the residential lobby of Marina City’s west tower. Photo by Charles McPhate.

Another resident, Bea Velazquez, posted on Facebook, “Alarms went crazy in our units. Fire department instructs everyone to get to the stairwells and get to the lobby.”

Ciara Newby was among residents questioning the need for an evacuation. “If they had said it was a small fire I would have stayed in my apartment. I wondered if it was something more sinister because I couldn’t understand why we would be evacuated for that.”

Alan Foshay and Tammy Mulcahy walked down from the 58th floor.

“No one seemed to think it was real and everyone was slow moving down the stairs,” said Foshay. “There were elderly people crying and could hardly get down the stairs.”

Whether the messages residents heard were “live” or pre-recorded, it is arguably an improvement from a small fire on February 19, 2015, during which residents heard no announcements over a new voice communication system. Initially blaming building personnel, the fire department took a closer look and discovered fire fighters had used the communication system incorrectly.