This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
No arrests had been made, but homeless squatters were suspected as being responsible for an early Tuesday morning blaze that heavily damaged an abandoned Salt Lake City dance club.
About two dozen firefighters responded to the 1 a.m. blaze at the former Club Expose, 300 W. 2100 South, Salt Lake City Fire Department spokeswoman Audra Sorensen said.
While the cause of the fire remained under investigation, crews found piles of clothing, stolen shopping carts, drugs and drug paraphernalia inside as they doused the flames.
The fire appears to have started in the middle of the building.
"It has been determined to have been a human-caused fire, but whether it was intentional or not we haven't found out yet," Sorensen said.
Initial damage estimates topped $50,000.
There were no injuries to firefighters or those believed to have been inside.
It is the second two-alarm fire that has erupted at the defunct dance club in the past five years, fire officials said.
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