MAGNA — Spurred by an explosion, a fire destroyed a condemned building Monday and caused the partial closure of a nearby highway.
The fire occurred inside an abandoned warehouse at 7200 West and 2100 South beginning around 7:30 p.m., said Salt Lake City Fire Capt. Mark Bednarik. Unified police officers were the first on scene and "heard an explosion," Bednarik said.
The explosion was likely the result of a propane tank, but the initial cause of the fire was still being investigated Monday night, according to the captain.
About 50 firefighters from the Unified Fire Authority and the Salt Lake and West Valley fire departments doused the fire, but not before it irreperably damaged the building's roof. The warehouse is considered a total loss, Bednarik said.
Westbound state Route 201 was closed to traffic between 5600 West and 8400 West until shortly before 9 p.m. due to heavy smoke.
Nobody was inside the building at the time of the fire, and there's no indication it's suspicious in nature, according to Bednarik. The warehouse, located in a commercial yard for construction vehicles, was vacant and had previously been condemned, he said. At one time it housed a construction business.
No injuries were reported in the fire.
— Ben Lockhart