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RIVERDALE, Utah (AP) -- Fire started in one storage unit at Stor-N-Lock and rapidly moved to other units, causing an estimated $250,000 damage.
Half of the estimated loss was to personal belongings in the units.
Fourteen units in one building were destroyed in the Monday night blaze and 13 were saved. The site has 590 units.
"This was a big fire," Fire Chief Doug Illum said. "There were so many combustible materials in there. Some of these units were stacked to the top with stuff. This was a real hot fire ... probably around 3,000 degrees.
"These are made of metal with no insulators, so it conducts heat and makes it like a big bake oven," he said.
Illum said the cause of the fire has not been determined.
The fire was reported at 9:45 p.m. Monday by a motorist who saw smoke billowing out of the units.
Firefighters said the shed doors were "glowing" by the time they got there.
Illum said the fire probably was burning for an hour before crews were notified.
"There were flames through the roof when we got here," he said.
Co-owner Alan Jones said the company has insurance on the structure, but the tenants are responsible for insuring the property in the units.
Stor-N-Lock has 19 locations in Utah, Idaho, Colorado and California.
(Copyright 2004 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
