Bluffdale family's home destroyed by 2-alarm fire

BLUFFDALE — Tiana Swensen had just come home from piano practice when she smelled the smoke.

The 10-year-old girl was home alone and wasn't sure what to do, so she called her mom, Tiffany Swensen, who was out of town.

"Tiffany got a call from her daughter saying she smelled smoke, so I called my husband and told him to go over and see if he could check it out," said neighbor Emily Stones, who had been in St. George with Tiana's mother and her 2-year-old son.

Stones' husband went over to the house and used two fire extinguishers to try and put the fire out, which at that point was only on the porch outside.

"That's when the back window blew out, and in about 10 seconds, the house was covered in black smoke," Stones said.

Tiana didn't want to leave her house without the beloved family dog. She tried to look for it, but was interrupted by a neighbor who ran over to make sure the girl was out of the home.

No one was injured in the fire, which caused more than $1 million in damage, except the small dog, which wasn't found until it was too late.

The two-alarm fire, which broke out about 8:45 p.m. Thursday, destroyed the home at 1052 W. Pheasant Tail Drive (14300 South) and its contents, said Bluffdale Fire Chief John Roberts.

"As our crews were rolling open our doors at the station, they could already see fire and smoke," he said. "So it was fully involved before we were even able to get here, which is why we put out a second alarm immediately."

The cause of the fire is under investigation, but Roberts said it's suspected to have started from a mosquito light on the back porch.

It took crews from several agencies about 90 minutes to control the blaze. Firefighters were able to keep the fire from damaging any neighboring homes, according to Roberts.

Among the home's contents destroyed in the blaze were products from Clark Swensen's photography business, which was located in the basement.

"We got our family and everyone was safe, so that is how we are coping," Clark Swensen said Friday. The Stones family let the Swensens stay at their house last night.

One concern for Clark Swensen, aside from the loss of personal items, was the fact his business would be down because of the damage to his working space.

"We have good friends and neighbors who are setting up an office space for us," he said.

Photographs from computer hard drives were salvaged, but many cameras and other printing equipment were ruined, according to Clark Swensen.

"We just ask that (clients) be patient, as we will be fully functional by Tuesday," he said.