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SALT LAKE CITY — Touring the charred landscape left behind by the fire that scorched 40 acres of hillside behind the state Capitol the day before, Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski and Fire Chief Karl Lieb on Wednesday praised firefighters for their fast action while urging residents to be as cautious as ever.
Tuesday's fire, the mayor and the chief warned, was a close call.
"You can see the devastation," Biskupski said. "Just being here and smelling the fire, it's unnerving to know — to stand right here and know how close this was."
The fast-moving grass fire on Ensign Peak caused precautionary evacuations of about 40 homes before firefighters could halt it, in some instances just feet away from houses. No homes were structurally damaged, but some had heat damage on siding or singed decks, Lieb said.
Three firefighters were hospitalized — two for heat exhaustion and smoke inhalation, and another for a leg injury — but they have since been released, Lieb said. Two residents were also taken to a hospital for smoke inhalation.
"We consider ourselves very fortunate," Lieb said. "I'm very proud of the work the firefighters did yesterday."
Fire officials previously estimated the fire had burned 100 acres, but later revised that estimate down to 40 acres after a survey of the fire's damage.
Lieb said more than 40 firefighters responded to the three-alarm fire within 15 minutes. The chief also credited neighbors for jumping to action, some grabbing garden hoses to help ward off the flames.
"This is what it means to come together as a community," Biskupksi said. "It was all hands on deck, and led by an extraordinary team of firefighters."
Please, do not come into these neighborhoods with your fireworks. It's super dangerous territory, and we're very fortunate we didn't lose any lives.
–Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski
Justin Peterson said his family and some friends were having a backyard pool party when they realized a fire was creeping toward their home.
"It was crazy," Peterson said. "We were literally in the pool and we saw this huge plume of smoke drifting between the houses."
Peterson said he jumped out of his pool and flew into action, grabbing a garden hose to try to stop the flames.
"The fire was moving so fast. It was huge," Peterson said. "It got so close to us over here it literally burnt the hair off my arms."
Peterson said the flames were towering by the time firefighters showed up.
"They're yelling, 'get out, get out,' but that house and that house would have been gone if we didn't help out," Peterson said.
"We did what we could," Peterson added. "I understand getting people out first, absolutely, but, man, it's really hard to walk away from your life's work and your neighbor's life work. You've got to protect it."
The cause of the fire was still not known Wednesday, Lieb said, noting crews were still investigating. But repeatedly, the chief and Biskupski urged residents to keep fireworks and campfires out of restricted areas.
"We are not done with the summer, and our fire restrictions are still in place," Biskupski said. "We want to make sure that people understand that this (area) lights up like a piece of newspaper. No matter what, we cannot be in these neighborhoods with matches of any sort or fireworks of any sort. We need to be very mindful the rest of this year."
Salt Lake City has already seen several fires in the city's foothills this year, Lieb said. Earlier this month, a 20-acre grass fire in Federal Heights was determined to be caused by a homeless campfire, the chief said.
The threat in Salt Lake's grassy hills is "immense," Lieb said.
"We're always vigilant on the north, east and west side of Salt Lake City at all times," he said.
Biskupski said Ensign Peak neighbors told her that Tuesday night, just hours after the fire scorched the hillside, they were still finding people in the area with fireworks and were warning them not to light them in the restricted area.
"Please, do not come into these neighborhoods with your fireworks," Biskupski said. "It's super dangerous territory, and we're very fortunate we didn't lose any lives."
Lieb urged residents to remember fire restrictions are still in place: everything north of South Temple, east of 900 East, and west of Redwood Road, as well as the city limits to the south.
More information about the city's fire restrictions can be found at slcfire.com.
Contributing: Caitlin Burchill
