Computer fire stops work at Provo office
PROVO — Deseret News reporters and workers from three other businesses evacuated a Provo office building Monday morning while arson investigators determined the cause of a small weekend blaze at 495 N. University Ave.
Provo Fire Department officials treated the building as a crime scene until they determined the ignition source for the fire was a malfunctioning computer in the offices of Advance Insurance on the second floor of the two-story building.
Investigators determined the fire started sometime between Saturday night and Monday morning in a computer processing unit under a desk and spread to papers stacked on top of the unit, Provo fire marshal Jim Guynn said.
Guynn said the fire appeared to be accidental.
Owners of a computer company on the first floor smelled smoke when they arrived at work Monday morning. Fire officials cleared the building before 9 a.m. Workers waited for more than two hours before returning.