A midafternoon fire tore through three floors of a North Side high-rise today, injuring one firefighter and displacing dozens.

A firefighter escorts an elderly woman from the building. Photo by Geoff Dougherty

When firefighters arrived at 810 W. Grace, flames were shooting through the windows on the 20th floor. Firefighters evacuated residents to the lower floors of the building and quickly extinguished the blaze.

Fire Commissioner Raymond Orozco said flames severely damaged a handful of apartments on the building's upper floors.

No residents were injured in the incident, said Fire Commissioner Raymond Orozco.

He described the firefighter's injuries as moderate.

Both Orozco and department spokesman Will Knight refused to say what the firefighter was doing when he was injured.

An agitated Knight said repeatedly that the city employee was injured "performing his duties as a firefighter," before walking away from a reporter at the scene.