TOOELE, Utah, June 28, 2023 (Gephardt Daily) — About 60 residences of a Tooele apartment building were evacuated Wednesday morning after a report of a fire.
The fire department was alerted to the blaze at about 9:09 a.m., and responded to the Kirk Apartments, at 57 W. Vine St. Crews saw smoke billowing from a third-floor apartment in the brick building, according to reports.
Only the one apartment burned, Tooele Fire Chief Matt McCoy told Gephardt Daily.
“That apartment itself would be a total loss,” McCoy said. “The room itself and the contents were burned.”
No one was home in that unit at the time of the fire, he said.
The apartment directly below has water damage, he said.
It took firefighters about 70 minutes to reach the “stop loss” point, McCoy said. Crews spent many more hours on scene, to check for hot spots, investigate, and ensure dozens of residents were safe to return to the structure.
“There’s about three tenants who will be displaced until repairs can be made,” McCoy said, indicating the three were residents of the burned unit and the water-damaged until below.
No injuries were reported. McCoy said besides the Tooele City Fire Department, agencies responding included Tooele Fire District, Tooele Army Depot, Tooele County Fire, Tooele City Police and the Tooele County Sheriff‘s Office.
