TAYLORSVILLE — Firefighters were expected to remain at Salt Lake Community College Tuesday putting out hot spots from a massive fire that destroyed the Applied Technology building.
The 39,000-square-foot building is considered a total loss. The total damage was estimated Tuesday to be about $14 million in losses to both the building and its contents, according to college officials.
Crews from Unified Fire Authority and other assisting agencies have been at the Redwood Road campus since the fire was first reported about 5:20 p.m. Monday.
No one was injured in the fire. Most of the building was undergoing a complete remodeling at the time, said Unified spokesman Ryan Love. Because of that, the majority of the building was vacant and many walls were torn down, which allowed the fire to spread more rapidly.
A print shop and the mailroom were both still operating at the time of the fire. Love said two people who were working in the print shop were the first to report the fire after hearing loud popping noises.
A cause of the fire was not known. Love said it may still be a day before investigators can sift through the rubble and begin their work. The fire is believed to have started on the roof of the building, Love said.
SLCC spokesman Joy Tiou said the school was waiting for more information on Tuesday regarding the fire before coming up with a contingency plan on how to move forward. He said the building was considered a total loss.
The renovation project was expected to be completed on Aug. 1 and the building ready for use for fall term, Tiou said.
In addition to the print shop and mailroom, a fine arts welding lab was being built as part of the renovation, as well as an area for HVAC groups and small classrooms and facility spaces in the upstairs area, he said. SLCC was working on finding alternative spaces for the welding and HVAC students to go to class this fall, Tiou said.
