A southern Utah wildfire that burned down an outbuilding and threatened five homes began Tuesday when chemicals from a person's shed overheated in the 100-degree weather and burst into flames.
The fire began Tuesday afternoon near La Verkin, where a person was cleaning out a shed, Utah fire officials said.
The person “disposed of chemicals that became inadvertently mixed and assisted by the 100-degree temperature caused spontaneous combustion to occur,” fire officials wrote in a news statement.
With high temperatures and almost no humidity — 6%— the fire spread rapidly to 19 acres.
Crews fought the fire from the ground and with aircraft.