SOUTH SALT LAKE — After an apartment complex in South Salt Lake went up in flames, causing an estimated $1 million in damage, authorities are offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest or conviction of whoever is responsible.
Officials believe the fast-moving fire reported on April 16 at 3:10 a.m. started as a car fire before quickly spreading to other vehicles.
Twelve units at the Shenandoah Apartment Complex, located at 3360 S. 336 East were considered a total loss and 12 more suffered smoke and water damage, according to South Salt Lake Fire Chief Terry Addison. Eighteen vehicles were destroyed or damaged.
Anyone with information about the fire is asked to contact the South Salt Lake Police Department, the South Salt Lake Fire Department or the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
No serious injuries were reported. Two young children under the age of 3 who were taken to Primary Children’s Hospital to be treated for possible smoke inhalation were released by the afternoon. Firefighters also managed to find a 2-month-old dog hiding under a bed.
About 100 firefighters from multiple agencies responded to the fire.
In the aftermath of the blaze, several GoFundMe campaigns launched to aid residents of the apartment complex:
- A couple, Ashton and Jared, who said they were living in the complex, fled the apartment “with nothing but the pajamas they were wearing.”
- Roommates Javi and Tamara lost a “majority of personal belongings” and one of their cars was damaged in the fire.
- A couple Cassidy and Jillyan escaped the fire by jumping from a window, but lost their home and only vehicle.
- A man named Jeremiah was awakened by his chihuahua, jumped from his window and watched as his “possessions burned away.”