Firefighters work at the scene of a blaze at an apartment building under construction near 1040 E. 2220 South in Sugar House in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2022. (Jeffrey D. Allred/Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY — It could take some time before those displaced in Tuesday’s Sugar House fire can go home. Crews are still monitoring what’s left of a fire in the rubble of a construction site in Sugar House.
At this point, whether people can go home all depends on the extent of the damage to their units.
Salt Lake City Fire Captain Shaun Mumedy said some units had their windows blown out and sustained smoke and heat damage. But Mumedy said the damage can extend beyond what’s visibly burnt.
“It can experience such a significant [amount of] heat from that fire that they can actually melt things within that adjacent apartment that weren’t involved in the fire.”
Mumedy said when certain things, like plastic, melt they can create hazardous fumes inside the home.
People with respiratory issues are advised to avoid the area near where the fire happened due to the smoke.
Utah Fire Marshal Ted Black said crews will continue to monitor the situation. Black said that what was left of the fire could burn for several more days.
“As the building collapses in on itself, it traps fuel packages. And smoldering fire doesn’t require a lot of oxygen and so those potentially could burn for several days.”
Black said fire officials will continue to stay on top of the hot embers through the demolition of the building. Thankfully, Black said this fire poses less of a risk to the environment since the building was only under construction, so most of what burned was natural wood.
The Red Cross said they have closed their evacuation site since nobody stayed last night but, it is still offering resources to people who need them.