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KEARNS — Investigators on Wednesday planned to sort through the remains of a two-alarm fire that destroyed three businesses Tuesday night.
The large fire destroyed a large warehouse that was shared by three businesses, a cabinet manufacturer and two pallet companies, said Unified Fire Authority Battalion Chief Brian Anderton.
"It was a complete loss," he said.
Crews were called just after 9 p.m. initially to a report of a house fire. When firefighters arrived at the address there was no fire, but they could smell smoke coming from a nearby warehouse district, 5180 W. 4900 South.
"They arrived to a fire that was already pretty advanced. The fire was already coming through the roof of the warehouse," said Anderton, who also described the warehouse as a "big tinderbox" due to all the wood that was inside.
Firefighters immediately went into a defensive mode, meaning they worked to make sure the fire didn't spread to other businesses. Approximately 50 firefighters from the Unified, West Valley and West Jordan departments needed more than four hours to knock the fire down, he said.
The bitter cold made fighting the inferno even more challenging for firefighters who had to worry about both the flames and ice.
All businesses were closed at the time of the fire. No injuries were reported.
Investigators planned to sift through the rubble and talk to business owners Wednesday in an attempt to pinpoint the origin and cause of the fire.
Video contributing: Shara Park
