Firefighter: Aerial views prove insightful during, after Main Street fire

SALT LAKE CITY — Crews said Monday night’s fire on Main Street destroyed four businesses and did $5 million in damage, and on Tuesday afternoon, one firefighter said the department would learn from what happened as he took an aerial tour of the aftermath.

Bob Silverthorne, Community Relations Division Chief with Salt Lake City Fire Department, surveyed the destruction from KSL Chopper 5.

“It’s a whole different ballpark when you see it from this vantage point,” Silverthorne said. “We were very fortunate not to have any civilian injuries or deaths.”

Officials said three firefighters were injured during the blaze — one suffering a broken ankle, another suffering abrasions after being trapped at one point under debris and a third recovering from smoke inhalation and dehydration.

Even with massive damage to London Belle, Whiskey Street, White Horse and Los Tapatios, Silverthorne said he was grateful no workers or customers were injured and that the fire did not spread even further than it did.

“I’m very proud of the firefighters for making this stop,” Silverthorne said. “As you can see, the buildings to the north and south are relatively intact.”

Firefighters said the blaze quickly extended into the void between the ceiling and roof, and before long, it was too dangerous for teams to battle the fire inside or from the rooftop.

“At that point, we kind of had to abandon because the building was under assault from the fire itself,” he said.

Silverthorne said aerial views proved vital in the overnight firefight as fire teams utilized a police drone.

“[The aerial views] were critical for us to have eyes like I do right now on top of the building, not just from a camera standpoint, but also from an infrared standpoint,” Silverthorne explained. “We can kind of actually see where our lines are being placed. We can direct the aerial master streams to where the highest heat signature is.”

Silverthorne said smoke was a massive problem for crews Monday night, not just in terms of visibility but also because of the potential toxins that smoke contained from the historic buildings.

He said that crews had to move their command post because of the smoke.

After surveying the fire, he believed the ordeal would be a learning experience for firefighters.

“This is also an opportunity to dissect whether our strategies and tactics were consistent with our priorities,” Silverthorne said. “We dive deep into this stuff and obviously we try to get better each and every day.”

He was grateful outside of the three injured firefighters that everyone else made it through the night safely.

“We take these things pretty seriously, especially historic buildings like this,” Silverthorne said. “We’re just really thankful and humbled.”