TWIN FALLS, Idaho — A fire caused extensive damage to a building at a vacant fish hatchery in the Rock Creek area of Twin Falls on Saturday, just one day after police were alerted to trespassers on the property.
Emergency responders arrived around 4:15 p.m. on Saturday to find the fire burning at the unused fish hatchery building.
"It's pretty extensive damage. The entire interior is charred," said Twin Falls spokesman Josh Palmer.
Four engines from Twin Falls and support from Rock Creek Fire helped extinguish the flames, but the fire caused significant damage to the structure, making it difficult for investigators to determine how and where the fire started.
"We're hopeful that we can determine the origin and then the cause, but the damage is pretty significant, and it will make that difficult," Palmer said.
No injuries were reported in the incident.
Officials said the building did not have active electrical power at the time of the fire.
Law enforcement had been called to the property just one day earlier to remove unauthorized individuals.
"We know that there were people down there the day before, the evening before," Palmer said. "One of the homes in the area reported that there were people down there ... I don't know if they got a good description on anyone, but they did see some people flee."
Fire investigators spent much of the weekend at the scene, but the extensive damage may make it impossible to identify a definitive cause.
The hatchery was once the center of the College of Southern Idaho aquaculture program. The city acquired the hatchery in 2023 and didn't intend to return the facility to a functional hatchery, but now faces unknown damage remediation costs.
This story was reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
