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WEST VALLEY CITY — Homeowners in West Valley City are urging people to be cautious after they said fireworks are likely what caused a large blaze that left two homes damaged early Thursday.
West Valley firefighters responded to a structure fire before 3 a.m. at the 3900 block of Boothill Drive.
"I could hear the fireworks just raining through the trees after they had already exploded, bouncing off the roof of our house and everything," Troy Wood said.
Most of his backyard was damaged in the blaze, including three sheds and an RV. The back of his home also suffered extensive water damage.
I could hear the fireworks just raining through the trees after they had already exploded, bouncing off the roof of our house.
–Troy Wood
Wood said before he went to bed, he went outside and spotted multiple firework tubes laying out in his backyard. He said he checked to see if any were "glowing."
"The wind started picking up and the storm clouds were coming in and all it took was one ember and it caught everything on fire," he said.
Firefighters said when they arrived, multiple structures were threatened. The flames were 20 to 30 feet high, forcing firefighters to attack from multiple sides of both homes. Unified, Murray, and West Jordan fire departments all assisted.
Wood's next-door neighbor had the extent of the damage. Firefighters said the homeowner was displaced after the blaze.
"My neighbor, she's 76-years-old, and she just woke up to the smell of smoke. If she wouldn't have (woken) up, she would have died," Wood said.
Officials with the West Valley City Fire Department are investigating the cause of the fire, but could not confirm if fireworks were to blame. Regardless, Wood hopes those lighting fireworks remember to be responsible.
"Just make sure you do them in a safe area. If the wind's blowing your fireworks out of your area, (when) you're lighting them, that means don't do them."
