Woman IDs man killed in Mpls fire as her ex and as a cook downtown

A house on Chicago Avenue in south Minneapolis caught on fire early Sunday, killing one person, authorities said.

Zvany Santiago said the deceased was her ex-boyfriend, Diego F. Rivera.

Rivera worked as a cook in downtown Minneapolis, Santiago said.

The blaze was first reported about 3:20 a.m. in a 2½-story duplex in the 3400 block of Chicago Avenue, according to fire officials.

Fire struck one house and then jumped to another, spreading to a nearby garage.

Crews arrived and saw flames showing from a rear porch, then spreading to the garage and the first two floors, according to Assistant Fire Chief Cherie Penn.

Within about 15 minutes, a house next door also caught fire, Penn said.

The person who died was found in the house that first burned, Penn said. The fire in both houses was extinguished, and no one else was physically harmed.

A truck and a small car parked near the garage and behind one of the homes were severely burned.

A fire truck parked along the 3400 block of Chicago Avenue with its lights flashing and yellow caution taped welcomed Santiago and her friend Sunday afternoon.

The Red Cross was assisting four families, composed of four adults and four children, who were displaced by the blaze.

This is Minneapolis' third fire fatality in the first 39 days of 2015.

Paul Walsh • 612-673-4482