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The shed exploded March 29 on a property at the end of East 150 South in Coalville, just northeast of Beacon Hill Park.
The explosion and subsequent fire engulfing the shed were reported around 7:45 p.m.
Battalion Chief Tyler Rowser with the North Summit Fire District said the man inside suffered third-degree burns on his arms, and burns on his legs and face.
“We immediately launched an air medical helicopter at that time, knowing that most burn patients need to get to the Salt Lake Valley quicker than we can provide ground transport,” Rowser said.
The man went to the University of Utah Medical Center in critical condition and is expected to recover. Crews extinguished the fire and are currently investigating its cause.
Summit County Sheriff’s Office shift logs state that investigators suspect butane could be a contributing factor.
Fire crews were called to the explosion while they finished mopping up an agricultural burn that grew larger than intended. It was on River Bend Road, west of Interstate 80 between Hoytsville and Wanship.
Rowser said the fire grew because it got into trees on the Weber River, jumping the river around 4 p.m.
As that fire burned, a motorist called dispatch around 5:30 p.m. to report another fire in Henefer. That temporarily pulled personnel off the Weber River burn. But it was a false alarm for an agricultural burn that was well under control.
Crews were then able to refocus on the agricultural burn near Wanship, which stopped at about 2 acres in size, before the shed exploded in Coalville.
It’s not the beginning of a busy or severe burn season. Rowser said that’s already begun, weeks ago, since Utah is seeing record warm temperatures and hardly any snow.
North Summit fire responded to four fires the weekend of March 14.
“We started in February with brush fires, so this is becoming a very common occurrence right now for us,” the battalion chief said.
North Summit Fire Chief Ben Nielson and Park City Fire Chief Pete Emery are recommending fire restrictions, including bans on open flames and fireworks, from May 1 and Oct. 31.
They’re under the jurisdiction of the Summit County Council, which has to pass the request on to Utah’s state forester to implement restrictions.
The South Summit Fire District is independently governed, but South Summit Fire Chief Scott Thorell said he’s on the same page about fire restrictions come May.
Cities and towns make their own fire rules, as does the U.S. Forest Service for the Uinta Mountains.
