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UINTAH, Weber County — When a fire breaks out, firefighters rush to the scene and put out the flames. But when a house caught fire in Weber County last week, that's not what happened — at least not right away.
Witnesses watched and recorded video of fire crews struggling to get their water hose to work as the home eventually burned to the ground.
Cellphone video taken at the scene revealed it took firefighters more than three minutes to get the hose working. Thirty seconds later, however, the water stopped.
Firefighters stood near a hydrant, trying to get the water going again. Seconds later it started back up, but the water didn't spray the house — it hit bystanders instead.
For eight full minutes, Jennifer Hanni said she watched this occur. This is precisely why, she said, there's nothing left of the house.
I don't know if these firefighters are properly trained.
–Jennifer Hanni, witness
"Water was spurting out," she said. "Then they'd have water spurting out of the fire truck and then the water would go on us. Then the hose would work for maybe 30 seconds."
Hanni watched the home burn to the ground.
"I don't know if these firefighters are properly trained," she said.
Uintah City Fire Chief Mike Marz helped battle the house fire. When he watched the video, he tried to explain what was happening.
"We had to back up the truck because the section of the hose we pulled off was just a hair short," he said.
We can always improve, and that's always our goal.
–Chief Mike Marz, Uintah City Fire Department
After the truck was moved, the water shut off.
"Someone else had jumped in the truck and had knocked the main switch, which shut the truck down," he said.
Marz said bystanders were sprayed because the valve on the hose was still open.
"We can make sure we place the truck better," he said.
Marz and 10 other firefighters make up his department, and they're all volunteers. He said they go through more than 180 hours of training, but mistakes still happen.
"We can always improve, and that's always our goal," he said.
Both Marz and an investigator with the fire marshal's office said by the time firefighters arrived, the home couldn't have been saved because of the way it was burning. The blaze started in the attic and quickly traveled down through the entire home.
