Large fire burns 2nd residential construction site in 3 days in Denver suburb

DENVER (AP) — Firefighters in the Denver metro area responded to the second large fire at an Aurora construction site in three days on Saturday.

Officials have not yet determined the cause for either fire and have not suggested that they were related, but both are under investigation.

Saturday’s five-alarm fire was reported shortly before 1 p.m., said Aurora Fire Rescue spokesperson Andrew Logan, at a large apartment building that was still under construction. Responding crews went to the top floor of the five-story building where the blaze was reported to have started, but the dangerous conditions soon forced crews from several different agencies to focus on fighting the flames from outside the structure.

One firefighter suffered minor injuries but was not taken to a hospital and is recovering, according to a department statement.

No other buildings were damaged in the fire, Logan said, and firefighters were expected to remain on the scene through Saturday evening.

Another fire early Thursday morning engulfed several residential buildings that were under construction in a different Aurora neighborhood. Aurora Fire Rescue wrote in a statement that Thursday’s fire “was a very volatile, highly dangerous scene” and that responding crews used a hose line to keep nearby propane tanks from exploding. No one was injured in Thursday’s fire.

“I believe the only thing those two have in common as of right now is that they both were under construction,” Aurora Fire deputy Chief Caine Hills said in a news conference Saturday afternoon.