WEST VALLEY CITY — Investigators believe a fire at a four-plex early Monday is suspicious in nature.

The fire was reported just before 4:50 a.m. near 4450 South and 3900 West.

"A neighbor saw smoke and flames as he was going off to work," said West Valley Fire Assistant Chief Kris Romijn.

The smoke was coming from the basement window of one of the units, he said. Once crews arrived, they only needed 15 minutes to extinguish the blaze.

Only one of the four units was occupied. The area where the fire started was vacant, Romijn said. That area suffered the heaviest damage with the apartment right above also suffering some fire damage. The two other units suffered only smoke damage, he said.

The lone occupant of the four-plex was in one of the smoke-damaged units. He was asleep when the fire started, but neighbors were able to wake him up and he was able to leave safely, Romijn said.

Fire crews from West Valley, West Jordan and the Unified Fire Authority assisted in battling the fire.

— Pat Reavy