SANDY, Utah, June 26, 2022 (Gephardt Daily) — A Sandy family was displaced Sunday following a propane tank explosion that damaged two homes, fire officials said.
Firefighters responded about 6 p.m. to reports of a backyard “barbecue failure” at 1281 E. 8725 South, Sandy Deputy Fire Chief Ryan McConaghie told Gephardt Daily.
“The homeowner had started up his barbecue, and from what he described, it sounded like there was some kind of barbecue failure,” McConaghie said.
Officials were still investigating the cause of the fire Sunday, but the homeowner described “a big whoosh that turned into a fireball after he turned it on,” the deputy fire chief said.
While the homeowner ran to get a fire extinguisher, the fire quickly spread from the back patio, up the side of the house and into the attic, McConaghie said. The fire also spread from the back patio to the side of a vacant neighboring home, he said.
The three residents and their dog were able to escape the home safely, and no firefighters were injured, McConaghie said.
It took firefighters about 30 minutes to extinguish the fire, McConaghie said. Crews from the Sandy, Draper, South Jordan and West Jordan fire departments and Unified Fire Authority assisted in extinguishing the fire, he said.
Damage to the two homes was estimated at $200,000.
