This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Four teenagers are in custody and awaiting charges in a Jan. 26 suspected arson fire that destroyed part of an abandoned apartment complex in South Salt Lake and injured two firefighters.
South Salt Lake police spokesman Gary Keller confirmed Tuesday that the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office is screening charges against teens, three males and a female, all 14 years old.
The juveniles were seen by multiple witnesses fleeing from the fire scene at 3045 S. 395 East last month. They were located a day later, and eventually arrested and booked into juvenile correction facilities.
The two-story, eight-unit building that burned was one of three on the property, now owned by South Salt Lake. The structures — vacant and fenced off — are marked for demolition.
Keller said the blaze was so hot that "radiant heat" from the flames overwhelmed the protective clothing of two firefighters. One suffered burns to a hand that were treated at the scene; another was taken to the hospital for treatment of burns to an arm and leg.
Neighbors told investigators that they saw the teens, who had apparently breached the security fencing, running from the burned building shortly before it erupted in flames.
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