‘This was an unusual one’: Chimney fire in Santa Clara leads to $8,000 in damages

ST. GEORGE — A chimney fire early Monday morning at 2447 Hafen Lane in Santa Clara led to an estimated $8,000 in damages.

Debris from a chimney fire at a Santa Clara home, Santa Clara, Utah, Aug. 9, 2021 | Photo by David Dudley, St George News

Santa Clara Fire Department Chief Randy Hancey told St. George News the homeowner called around 12:30 a.m. Monday.

The cause of the fire, Hancey said, was overloading the fireplace with wood. The extra materials caused the chimney to overheat.

“We’re talking about an external gas fireplace,” he said. “It’s located in a courtyard. Everybody should take care not to add materials into these fireplaces.”

Hancey said firefighters evacuated the family, then opened the wall around the chimney in efforts to contain the fire. They discovered that the fire had spread to the subframing, which supports the chimney.

The fire began in the chimney to the right, Santa Clara, Utah, Aug. 9, 2021 | Photo by David Dudley, St George News

While the fire was contained by 2:30 a.m., Hancey said his crew didn’t leave the scene until after 3:30 a.m. after they’d mopped up and cleaned the area.

“This kind of fire is not common at this time of year,” he said. “We usually see chimney fires during the cold months. So this was an unusual one.”

Hancey said there were no injuries reported as a result of the fire.

St. George Fire Department, as well as Santa Clara/ Ivins Police Department, assisted at the scene.

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2021, all rights reserved.

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