The Grantsville City Police Department has identified the victim of a fatal fire on March 4 in an apartment complex.
James Harvey Williams, 75, was discovered by responding firefighters in the bathroom of his residence at Willow Creek Apartments, according to Grantsville City police. It was determined that Williams had already died before fire crews located his body.
The cause of Williams’ death is undetermined, pending results from the state Medical Examiner’s office. The cause of the fire also remains under investigation by the state Fire Marshal’s office.
When firefighters arrived at the apartment complex on Apple Street around 9:45 p.m., Williams’s apartment was already fully engulfed, according to Grantsville City Police Officer Alison Peterson. Crews arriving on scene were concerned about the fire spreading into other units in the multiplex apartment building due to high winds, Grantsville City Mayor Brent Marshall said.
Two engines from the Grantsville City fire department and an engine from North Tooele Fire District responded, according to Marshall. The flames were knocked down within five to 10 minutes and crews were prepared as it was suspected the tenant was still inside the apartment.
The initial internal attack crew discovered Williams in the bathroom and checked for a pulse before he was removed from the apartment, Marshall said. The first crew was relieved due to low oxygen alarms and a second crew completed the removal of Williams’s body.
Williams had minor burns on one arm and singed hair, according to Marshall.
In a release, the Grantsville City Police Department expressed condolences to Williams’s family and friends.