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PROVO — In a worried sounding voice, Yvette Kimber can be heard alerting other apartment tenants several times about a fire and asking emergency dispatchers to "please hurry."
Call to 911 released
The 911 tapes from the fatal fire at the Boulders Apartments, 750 S. 650 West in Provo, on March 14 have been released to the public.
"Fire, fully engulfed," Kimber said to a 911 dispatcher.
Kimber is accused of starting the fire that quickly spread from her apartment to several others.
The dispatcher asks, "Are you inside?"
"I just got out," Kimber says.
"OK, is anyone inside?" asks the dispatcher.
"No," Kimber says.
During the call, Kimber admits to starting the fire.
"Do you know what caused it?" the dispatcher says.
Kimber responds, "No, I think I fell asleep with a cigarette."
Kimber begs the dispatcher to hurry. She can be heard frantically yelling out to her neighbors.
"The whole apartment's on fire. Fire," yells Kimber.
Although the names from the 911 tapes have been redacted, prosecutors earlier said Kimber later admitted she was trying to pass out with a lit cigarette in her hand so her apartment would catch on fire. When that didn't work, she lit a basketball schedule and a throw pillow on fire with a lighter.
A police affidavit says Kimber had taken prescription drugs, beer and marijuana just before the fire.
Several people also called 911 as the fire raged.
"The fire is spreading. … The windows are exploding," one caller said. "You may need to send paramedics. There may be people trapped. … I see one person trapped upstairs trying to get out the window."
The fire is spreading. … The windows are exploding... There may be people trapped. … I see one person trapped upstairs trying to get out the window.
–911 caller
Other callers also were concerned about people possibly being trapped, telling dispatchers, "We're trying to help people jump out this window" and, "There's a lady trapped upstairs. She can't get out."
Friend calls 911 about Kimber
Just prior to the calls about the fire, one of Kimber's friends, who lives in Santaquin, called 911 to report Kimber may be suicidal.
"My friend just called me and basically said she's going to kill herself, and I think she probably will," the woman said. "Her boyfriend broke up with her today, and she has a long history of depression."
The woman said Kimber told her she "wanted to say goodbye" and then hung up the phone.
According to jail records, the friend's call came at 9:04 p.m. Kimber's 911 call was made at 9:06 p.m. When fire crews arrived, the building was already heavily engulfed, leading the fire marshal to determine that "it was not plausible" for a fire to spread that quickly from simply a discarded cigarette.
Charges against Kimber pending
Karen Murray and Catherine Crane were killed when they became trapped inside their apartments. A third person, Jeanette Spahr, 51, was hospitalized with a broken pelvis and smoke inhalation burns after being forced to jump from her second-story window to escape the flames.
Kimber was arrested and booked into the Utah County Jail for investigation of two counts of murder and aggravated arson.
Official charges against Kimber were pending Tuesday from the Utah County Attorney's Office.
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Story written with contributions from Pat Reavy and Sandra Yi.
