OREM, Utah — A mansion in Orem that was uninhabited and under construction caught fire Tuesday night, sending flames and a plume of smoke high into the sky that could be seen from miles away.
WATCH: Video captures view of flames destroying Orem home (Melissa Mortensen Johnson)
The fire sparked at 479 East 1450 North in the Old Orchard Estates Subdivision. Officials responded to the fire at 5:58 p.m. Tuesday, having already found a significant
amount of the structure involved in the fire.
The home was listed for sale in November 2023 for $3.89 million. The two-story mansion sat on a 1.23-acre lot and had seven bedrooms and nine bathrooms.
Seth Swenson, Division Chief with the Orem Fire Department, said the fire spread very quickly.
"About a quarter of the structure had significant fire damage," he explained.
What made firefighting efforts especially difficult was the unfinished nature of the home.
"Because of the unfinished structure that it was, just a lot of wood piles, wood on top of wood that's going to be smoldering through the night," Swenson told FOX 13 News on Tuesday night.
Realtors described the home as "the epitome of luxury living" with an indoor pool, water slide, theater room and a private tennis/pickleball court.
"It was under construction — being sold as under construction — and yeah, it was a nice property," said Ned Chidester, a real estate broker with Berkshire Hathaway. "The swimming pool, tennis court, those were the finished portions of the house."
Photos show the amenities amid the construction work.
"The original construction of the house started in 2015, from what we understand," said Chidester. "I think the owners of the property, their plans had just changed, and I think ... they just decided that they weren't gonna pursue a finished house and just wanted to sell it."
The property has an interesting history.
Dr. Joseph Berg and his fiancee were found dead inside the home back in 2012. Their deaths were ruled as an accidental overdose, according to autopsy reports and a police investigation.
According to Utah County Land Records, there have been several owners of the property, dating back to 1989.
Most recently, Dickson Properties LLC has been the property owner since 2020. Both Thomas and Beverly Dickson were listed as owners before that on separate occasions, dating back to 2013.
It took 30 firefighters from Orem, Provo and Pleasant Grove departments to finally extinguish the blaze by 8:00 p.m.
"We're incredibly sad at this point for the owners and something like this would happen," said Chidester. "Sad for the entire neighborhood to have to go through this... especially this time of year."
No injuries were reported, and the cause of the fire is under investigation.
