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Samantha Hayes ReportingThe same qualities that made condominiums in Alta so appealing may have put them in jeopardy.
In an emergency, is a place up the canyon too far from help? That's a burning question in light of a fire which burned those condominiums Sunday morning. Crews had to fight a snowstorm along with the fire.
Ask one of Alta's 398 residents about living in Little Cottonwood Canyon and they'll tell you, "It's a great little town."
It is a great little town, until you have a big city problem.
Henry Scott/ Alta resident: "Unfortunately we had a great view. We were awakened at two o'clock. Our front windows face over there, and I couldn't believe what I saw. It was dreadful."
The Hellgate condominiums were in flames. Fifty-four people evacuated. Several units were destroyed. And firefighters struggled to fight the flames.
Henry Scott: "The wind was howling so that it made it very difficult on the firefighters to contain the fire. They were pouring water on it, but it kept flaming back up."
Firefighters battled the wind, the cold, and snow drifts that stood in the way.
Joe Wicken/ Unified Fire Authority: "So they had a problem getting water on the fire. Not because there was a water problem, but more because they had a hard time getting in a position to put water on the fire."
The Hellgate was burning down, but everything around it was frozen over.
Jerry Oyama/ Condominium Manager: "These guys are really good. Even last night, it snowed, and they got up easily."
The Unified Fire Authority staffs a station at nearby Snowbird all day, every day. And firefighters from the valley drove up the canyon to help.
Investigators say weather did not delay the response time, but made it difficult to fight the fire.
Joe Wicken/ Unified Fire Authority: "They had snow drifts to battle. Just the terrain was rough for them to handle. That was the bigger problem here."
Managers of other condominiums say they are going through their emergency systems and fire alarms, and making sure the fire extinguishers and other safety measures are working.
Fire investigators are searching for what started the fire at the Hellgate. They may not finish their report for several weeks.
