FARMINGTON, Utah, July 26, 2018 (Gephardt Daily) — A man is in critical condition after an explosion at a Farmington apartment complex, officials said.
Farmington City Police Chief Wayne Hansen told Gephardt Daily officials got a call of a reported explosion at the Avanti at Farmington Station apartments at 736 W. State Street around 6 p.m. Thursday.
“When officers arrived, they found a garage had been severely impacted by some type of explosion,” Hansen said. “We had an adult male victim that was inside the garage when the explosion occurred, we have flown him by Life Flight to the University of Utah burn center in critical condition. I don’t know the extent of his burns or other injuries at this point.”
The apartment building has been evacuated and police are working with a city building inspector, structural officials and power and gas companies to see who can be allowed back into the building.
Investigators from multiple jurisdictions are also working to determine the cause of the explosion.
Initial reports from the scene indicate the man may have been making fireworks; Hansen said that has not been confirmed.
“Certainly something was being done there to cause this,” he added. “I would say that whatever it was that exploded, this is a pretty serious amount of explosives. Hopefully he will recover so we can get a little bit more from him about just what led up to this.”
The man apparently was the only person in his residence when the explosion occurred; though initial reports indicate his girlfriend and a pet cat also live in the residence.
Officials have requested assistance from the local Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives officials due to their expertise and they will work together to establish if it is a criminal case.
Hansen said it is fortunate no one else was hurt as the apartment is right across from the community swimming pool at the complex.
Gephardt Daily will have more on this developing story as information is made available.
