PROVO, Utah, Feb. 20, 2019 (Gephardt Daily) — The Utah County Fire Marshal has determined the cause of the fire that destroyed the Los Hermanos restaurant, a Provo landmark, on Feb. 11.
“The origin of the fire has been identified as the prep kitchen in the basement. The cause is accidental,” a Provo Fire & Rescue statement says.
“Towels used in all areas the restaurant had been laundered and placed under the sink. Because of these types of towels become embedded with oils over their lifespan they can, in the right circumstances, self-generate heat until they spontaneously ignite into flame.”
So the laundered, stored towels sparked the blaze.
“According to Fire Marshal Lynn Schofield, this type of fire is fairly uncommon, however they do occur,” the statement said.
“There are lots of factors that have to come into perfect alignment for this type of fire, and in this case they did investigators have been working since the fire to determine the cause.”
