Two men painting in an apartment Friday jumped from a second-story window after fumes apparently were ignited by a stove pilot light.
According to witness Tonya Mestek, who lives on the first floor of 305 E. Third Ave., the two men broke through a window and were still on fire when they leaped from an upstairs apartment. One of the men grabbed a hose outside and doused himself and the other man, Mestek said.
Both men were taken to the Intermountain Burn Center in critical condition, Salt Lake City Fire Department spokesman Dennis McKone said. One man suffered third-degree burns over 75 percent of his body and also sustained internal injuries from the jump. The other man had third-degree burns over 25 percent of his body, according to McKone. Their names were being withheld until families were notified.
The fire started at about 3:45 p.m. and was contained to the second-floor apartment. The cause appears to have been a build-up of oil-based paint fumes ignited by a stove pilot light, McKone said. Damage to the building is estimated at about $75,000.
Next-door neighbor Jason Elander said he ran upstairs with an extinguisher to help keep the fire from spreading into a hall. He then ran downstairs and turned a garden hose on the flames. He also gave aid to the two victims.
"They came out like a ball of fire," Elander said.
One of the building's owners, Paulette Campbell, was working in another apartment. She was not injured.
E-mail: sspeckman@desnews.com