OREM, Utah, Dec. 27, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — Firefighters from three departments toiled in freezing temperatures Tuesday night trying to save a huge luxury home in Orem.
The 27,000-square-foot residence was already about 70 percent engulfed in flames when crews rolled up on the fire at 479 E. 1450 N, Orem Assistant Fire Chief Shaun Hirst said. No one was home and there were no injuries in the blaze dispatched at 5:58 p.m., he said.
Crews from all four of Orem’s firehouses fought the fire, assisted by the Provo and Pleasant Grove departments; their efforts, however, were apparently in vain.
“It will be a total loss,” Hirst said.
The home was for sale, listing at $3.9 million and boasting a water slide and tennis court inside.
Hirst said he didn’t have the name of the owner. “There was a for sale sign in the yard.”
Units were still on the scene at midnight conducting mop-up operations, “Considering how cold it is and the amount of water we had to use, the investigation of the cause will begin tomorrow,” Hirst said.
With the home so near fully engulfed initially, firefighters at first had to adopt a defensive attack, as in no entry. “Not during the active fire fight,” Hirst said, which went on for several hours.
