The Cedar City Fire Department at the scene of a generator fire at the Cedar City Regional Airport, Cedar City, Utah, Oct. 17, 2017 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
CEDAR CITY — A portable generator overheated and caught fire in an equipment yard at the Cedar City Regional Airport Tuesday afternoon. Fire crews extinguished the blaze within minutes. No injuries were reported.
According to Cedar City Fire Department Capt. Russ Brunson, the incident occurred shortly before 2 p.m. during an equipment test by Federal Aviation Administration personnel.
“The FAA was doing their routine checks on the generator,” Brunson said. “They start them up to make sure everything is running for maintenance purposes.”
“While it was running, it overheated and caught fire,” Brunson said, adding that the exact cause of the fire is still under investigation.
Firefighters were able to douse the blaze within minutes of their arrival. Although the burned-out generator was a total loss, there was no apparent damage to any of the other pieces of equipment stored within the fenced-in yard adjacent to a maintenance building.
This report is based on statements from emergency responders and may not contain the full scope of findings.
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Capt. Russ Brunson of the Cedar City Fire Department at the scene of a generator fire at the Cedar City Regional Airport, Cedar City, Utah, Oct. 17, 2017 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
The Cedar City Fire Department at the scene of a generator fire at the Cedar City Regional Airport, Cedar City, Utah, Oct. 17, 2017 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
The Cedar City Fire Department at the scene of a generator fire at the Cedar City Regional Airport, Cedar City, Utah, Oct. 17, 2017 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
The Cedar City Fire Department at the scene of a generator fire at the Cedar City Regional Airport, Cedar City, Utah, Oct. 17, 2017 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
The Cedar City Fire Department at the scene of a generator fire at the Cedar City Regional Airport, Cedar City, Utah, Oct. 17, 2017 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
The Cedar City Fire Department at the scene of a generator fire at the Cedar City Regional Airport, Cedar City, Utah, Oct. 17, 2017 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
The Cedar City Fire Department at the scene of a generator fire at the Cedar City Regional Airport, Cedar City, Utah, Oct. 17, 2017 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News
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Jeff Richards, a native of Salt Lake City with family roots in Panguitch, lived in Moab for 20 years before joining St. George News in 2017. Jeff is a longtime journalist and secondary school teacher. He and his wife Penny are the parents of five daughters. They also have two young grandsons. Jeff and his family enjoy swimming, camping, sightseeing, reading, and taking pictures.