TAYLORSVILLE, Utah, July 12, 2018 (Gephardt Daily) — Unified Fire Department crews battled a brush fire in Taylorsville Thursday evening.
Matthew McFarland, UFA spokesman, told Gephardt Daily that a field fire measuring less than an acre was reported in the area of 4341 S. Riverboat Road (750 West) at approximately 7 p.m.
About 50 firefighters were called to the scene. McFarland said firefighters will be working well past dark to make sure the perimeter is secure.
“Upon arrival, first reports were there may have been multiple starts to it, that’s unconfirmed at this point in time, but first reports said that,” McFarland said.
“Immediately, we could see high potential for spread, because of weather conditions as well as dried out fuels, as well as thick vegetation there in the river bottom, so we called in for support units to help surplus that initial alarm.”
He said that when there are multiple start points to a fire it does raise suspicions, but it’s not enough to confirm it was started intentionally. Investigators are on the scene.
McFarland said there are high voltage lines directly above the fire, which crews see as a safety issue.
“When there’s heavy smoke there can often be arcing from those high voltage lines, that’s something our guys think about,” he added.
An arc flash happens when electric current flows through an air gap between conductors, according to Wikipedia.
McFarland said crews were also concerned as the fire pushed towards the south end because there is an apartment complex, the Fairstone at Riverview, nearby. There is a parking lot between the apartment complex and the vegetation.
South Salt Lake and West Valley Fire assisted with the incident.
Gephardt Daily will have more on this developing story as information is made available.
