- A fire in Ogden rail yard sent thick black smoke into the air.
- Firefighters quickly contained the blaze, preventing it from spreading to nearby woods.
- No injuries were reported, and the cause of the fire is under investigation.
OGDEN — A dramatic fire in an Ogden rail yard on Tuesday sent thick black smoke into the air and prompted a strong response from firefighters.
While highly visible and intense at times, though, the blaze was in a remote area and posed no threat to the community, the Ogden Fire Department said in a statement after getting it under control. "Crews quickly surrounded the fire and successfully prevented it from spreading into the wooded river bottoms. There were no injuries," the fire department said.
The call for the fire came in around noon on Tuesday, and the blaze consumed plastic construction pipe in the rail yard north of the 31st Street overpass. Officials didn't report a cause, and the fire remains under investigation.
Crews from three agencies assisted Ogden firefighters. "Multiple engines and ladder trucks are on scene," the Ogden Fire Department said in an earlier social media post.
No homes were at risk, the department said, but it had asked the public to avoid the area north of the 31st Street overpass and east of the I-15 corridor. "For your safety and the safety of our crews, please avoid the area and consider using alternate east/west routes such as 24th Street, 21st Street or 12th Street," the fire department said. The 31st Street overpass serves as a main connector from Ogden to I-15.
Photos and video of the blaze showed intense flames in an open area of the rail yard that bisects Ogden, just east of the Weber River. The location abuts an undeveloped area beside the river that's filled with trees but no structures.
Initially, buses between the Roy and Ogden FrontRunner stations were rerouted, though UTA said that ended around 1:30 p.m. The FrontRunner line to Ogden passes through the rail yard where the fire was located.
