LEHI, Utah — Three firefighters were injured after dozens responded to a house fire in Lehi that left the home a complete loss Thursday.
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Around 30 firefighters from the Lehi City Fire Department responded to the home at 531 East 350 South just after 1:15 p.m. and found the building had already been completely evacuated.
The Lehi Fire Department and other agencies responded to with about 30 firefighters. Three members of the crew were injured while putting it out, said Chief Jeremy Craft.
"One of them was heat exhaustion; just super hot today," he said. "Encapsulated, working hard, got a little dehydrated, and then we had two firefighters that suffered an electrical shock, electrocution if you will."
The officer who suffered from heat exhaustion was treated on scene, and the two who were electrocuted were released from the hospital earlier that night.
"There was heavy fire around where we shut the electricity off," said Chief Craft. "So once we got over there and we thought we had shut the electricity off, but something had happened. So it didn't actually turn it off."
An animal control officer and traffic team sergeant were able to rescue a dog from the burning home through a doggy door.
According to fire officials, the house is considered to be a total loss, with the cause of the fire being due to a child inside the home playing with matches. Despite the fire being out, the scene is still considered to be active and police have closed off the road in front of the home.
The smell of smoke coming from their neighbor’s house Thursday afternoon scared Parker and Crystal Southwick.
“I panicked because I lost my mom in a house fire when I was 10," said Crystal. "It brought memories back.”
The side of their house was melted from the blaze.
“Any closer and our house would have been gone completely too," said Parker. "[It] sucks, but just glad everybody's okay.”
Hours after the fire was extinguished, officials learned a child was playing with matches on the side of the house, and that's how the fire started, said Chief Craft.
"Teaching your children fire safety is the most important thing," he said. "Understanding how powerful fire can be and how much destruction fire can cause if it's not controlled properly."
The siding of a home next door melted, and a shed and two vehicles were also damaged in the fire.
