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SANDY — A longtime, popular Sandy restaurant was gutted in a large explosion early Monday.
Johanna's Restaurant, 9725 S. State, was considered a "complete loss" after the explosion ripped through it just after midnight, said Sandy Fire Marshal Robert DeKorver. The explosion was so big that some police officers at the Sandy Police Department, located a couple of blocks west of the restaurant, heard it before they were dispatched to it.
Officers who arrived prior to fire crews found smoke and flames coming from the rear of the building.
The impact from the blast sent debris into State Street and caused a partial collapse of the roof, DeKorver said. Nearby Jordan High School and the LDS seminary building near the school were not damaged. DeKorver said the school's surveillance system recorded the explosion.
"It appeared to be quite big," he said.
Monday afternoon, the Canyons School District publicly released video of the explosion. The blast was also recorded at a construction site across the street where a surveillance camera had been set up for security. Both videos show a violent, fiery blast that literally blew off part of the roof.

No one was inside the building when the explosion occurred, and no one was injured. The restaurant was open on Sunday until 3 p.m. The last employees left the building about 3:30 p.m., DeKorver said.
Based on the way the doors were blown out, DeKorver said investigators believe the explosion came from inside the building. But he could not say Monday whether the source of the explosion was in the kitchen or another part of the building.
DeKorver wasn't ready to speculate on a cause Monday afternoon. He said several possibilities were being considered, including a possible gas leak. DeKorver said from the initial investigation, there did not seem to be anything suspicious about the blast.
He said the investigation would be methodical and was slowed by Monday's snowstorm.
WOW! WATCH: Another angle of Johanna's explosion, from cameras at Jordan HS @KSL5TVpic.twitter.com/qhDQWnKJL4
— Sandra Yi (@KSL_SandraYi) December 14, 2015
Johanna's Restaurant, which used to be Johanna's Kitchen, has gone through several owners since it opened in 1971, DeKorver said. But it has remained at its current location for the entire 44 years.
Ron VanOtten drove from Farmington to see the remains of the building on Monday. His grandmother, Johanna Nielsen, started the restaurant in 1971 and is the establishment's namesake.
Johanna's opened with four booths and a kitchen and she cooked, VanOtten said. It immediately was a success and became known for its scones and breakfasts. Johanna raised and supported six children from the money she made from the restaurant.
At some point in their lives, all the children and grandchildren worked in the restaurant, he said. VanOtten recalled being in the restaurant as a baby, and later working there when he turned 14.
"It's not good," he said while surveying the damage on Monday. "You can see right through it. There's a lot of stuff missing, a lot of damage."
Johanna Nielsen sold the restaurant in 2001 after putting her "heart and tears" into it for decades, VanOtten said.
"It's hard to see it like this. I hope that they rebuild it again."
Contributing: Sandra Yi
