Heroic actions help Herriman dodge disaster in massive weekend fire and explosion

HERRIMAN — Herriman dodged a lot of disaster from a massive fire and explosion over the weekend, according to new details.

An SUV slammed into a shopping center, triggering a gas leak, and the building blew up. No one died in the fire or explosion, but it could've been much worse.

On Monday morning, Herriman city workers and many others took a firsthand look at the damage — a clear catastrophe to the building. But what becomes of it is too early to say.

"It could be weeks; it could even be months. We don't know exactly," said Herriman city spokesman Jonathan LaFollette.

What happened to it is clear: Part of the building blew up Saturday night.

"I look up … and I see a big old mushroom cloud, and the roof is probably 30, 40 feet above me," said Trayce Young, who witnessed the explosion.

Firefighters told KSL that an SUV had crashed into the Domino's Pizza off 13400 S. 5200 West, severing a gas line and instantly catching fire. Those inside the car were unable to escape. They are only alive today because two people jumped in to help.

"We had two heroic bystanders that literally jumped in, put their own life safety at risk and got both of these people out of the car," said Unified Fire Capt. Tony Barker.

Meanwhile, a worker at the Jimmy John's next door, who heard the hiss of the gas, told everybody there to get out and realized he should warn people inside the Domino's, too.

Related:

'Everyone, get out': The story of Herriman explosion told by employees inside

Witnesses recount a powerful explosion at a Herriman strip mall Saturday night.

"I went over to Domino's … and they were all there … just thinking the soda fell off and all exploded, and I'm like, 'Everyone, get out, we need to call the cops,'" said Austin Spencer, who warned others before the explosion.

Moments later, the building exploded, the Domino's was destroyed and significant damage was done to both businesses on either side.

The only part of the building spared was an adjacent city well, which was part of Herriman's water supply. Initial inspections show it was left unharmed.

"It was inspected during the incident. It was safe. We're going to have some structural engineers come in and make sure the equipment around the building is safe. We think it is, but we'll have an engineer come by to make sure," LaFollette said.

Police were standing watch Monday to make sure it stayed undisturbed.

There are some questions that remain, however, such as why the car lost control in the first place. KSL spoke to Riverton police, who said the cause of the crash is still under investigation.

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