A fire that started late Friday night destroyed an under-construction, three-story apartment building, according to the Ogden City Fire Department.
In a news conference Saturday morning, Ogden Fire Chief Mike Slater said the structure on the 100 block of 18th Street was “burned to the ground” — despite the fast efforts of 35 firefighters hailing from Ogden and nearby districts.
The cause of the blaze remains unknown, though Slater said the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives — the federal agency that investigates arson — is on the scene.
Investigators will be digging through the scene for days, he said, but are determined to find the cause and, if it was started by someone, “hold those accountable” who were responsible.
In an early morning news release, the department said it first responded just before midnight and arrived to find the building already “had heavy fire involvement.”
Crews put out the flames within an hour, according to the release, but Slater said the building is “a complete loss.”
“There is a crane on-site,” he said. “We’re coming up with a plan to make sure that that comes down safely and doesn’t collapse on people.”
Because of those safety concerns as well as the active investigation, he asked people to avoid the area.
The fire was just one of several to happen in Ogden this month.
On Aug. 4, the department reported a multilevel apartment building on the 300 block of 32nd Street had been damaged in a blaze, displacing 13 residents.
On Aug. 3, the department reported an unoccupied town home at 400 West on 12th Street had caught fire, causing an estimated $1.6 million in damage.
Note to readers • This story has been updated to reflect this latest Ogden fire. An earlier version from a content-sharing partner detailed a previous blaze.