Massive Workshop Fire Burns 8 Acres, 8 Dead, More Follow
I think we all know this one. "The biggest workshop in the county" - Murray's Costume Manor -- a manufacturing hub that reached far beyond Utah limits, taken over by Fazbear Entertainment after buying it out and saving it from debts.
This article truly shows the community involvement in this tragedy. This is only one news story about the fire, with a separate article talking about the "Tragedy of Team 012": More than half a dozen Fazbear employees were tasked to venture to the abandoned facility to acquire company assets weeks (could even be months) prior to the fire. They were reported missing by their families, but law enforcement and the company did little about it until one fateful morning on September 8th, 1979 when residents witnessed a pillar of smoke coming from the middle of the woods. When fire engines and volunteers arrived, they were too late. They found the facility consumed in flames, and it was already reaching the wooded area near Zion. They contacted nearby departments and together, they washed the fire away, and it only took almost half a day of community collaboration.
The fire leaves a mark to the town as one event that truly brought them together, sort of like the 1983 State Street River, where volunteers joined hands to control the flood.
However, despite its famous stand, it opened slightly a deeper connection -- a connection of incidents, accidents, and eventually.... homicide.
Transcript:
>Massive workshop fire burns 8 acres, 8 dead, more follow
>Early Saturday morning, the largest manufacturing facility in the county, Murray’s Costume Manor ignited in flames near Zion National Park “due to faulty wiring,” Fire Chief Gooser said.
>Firemen responded to the factory fire at 7:00 a.m. when nearby residents saw a pillar of smoke coming from the middle of the wooded area.
>Upon reaching the burning building, the damage was already spreading towards the trees. Gooser called nearby departments all over the county to help stop the fire: Springdale, Washington City, and St. George.
>According to Joseph Emphey, the fire reached its highest point by 8 a.m., completely consuming the facility before additional reinforcements arrived. The fire caused blockades all over Zion and suspended classes.
>When the hydrants ran out, fire volunteers and residents collected huge amounts of water from the river to refuel tankers. Local businesses used old construction and agriculture trucks to carry water from the river and up towards the fire.
>Jerry Fitz, a volunteer truck driver who helped carry water through dirt roads, said the smoke was so thick, he couldn’t see a thing when he got there.
>The fire took half of the day to stop, and caused several million dollars in damage.
>Although the fire did not reach any towns, it burned the surrounding eight acres, including the Murray Mansion, but firemen put out the fire in time before it could destroy the home. When firemen and volun-teers surveyed the ruined facility and the mansion, they discovered four bodies amidst the wreckage and four more outside.
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>Four individuals were found inside the facility by firemen. An investigation led by Sheriff’s Deputy Timothy Peterson discovered two Fazbear Entertainment-bran-ded vans nearby: one left abandoned in the parking lot and another in a wreckage just along the road.
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>Due to the items and uniforms found on the victims, police concluded that the four victims are the following: Dominic Marquez, Harry J. Simmons, Glendall Smith, and Terrence Thompson.
>The other four were discovered by motorists and residents in the surrounding area: Yule Watts, William J. Wyatt, Michael A. Gerhardt, and Arnold S. Doss.
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>The investigation insisted that the fire started after something sparked the flam- mable fuel systems that ran through the building, origin-ating from the basement, which could not be excavated due to complications, said Gooser.
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>The four victims inside the facility were Fazbear Enter-tainment workers, who were apparently reported missing by their families weeks prior. They were previously tasked to acquire assets and property from the facility, but they never answered back despite Fazbear Entertain-ment’s repeated callbacks.
>In response to the tragedy, Fazbear Entertainment stat-ed, “Our dearest technicians who perished in the fire will forever be remembered and their families compensated for their losses.”
>When asked about the fire and the second company van owned by Arnold Doss, the company insisted, “The fire is indeed a tragedy, and we are proud of the community for its contribution in stopp-ing the fire. We sent Arnie to acquire company assets and to check in on the welfare of our dear technicians.”