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Jed Boal ReportingWhile rain and snow drenched Utah in recent weeks, the state urges communities to consider the risk of wildfire now, before the fires start to burn. Many communities prepare for the threat, but, others need to come up with better plans for protection.
It is a sight that no one wants to see, a wall of fire burning at their back door. It happens in Utah each summer. A recent report identifies 600 communities at risk of wildfire, while others have taken serious steps to protect themselves.
Each summer in Utah, communities nestled in the mountains and those that straddle the wildlands flirt with disaster. Most dodge the danger; others are not so lucky. Each community is responsible.
Jim Springer, Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands: "They have to take responsibility for the protection of their own community. That's what the wildfire protection plan allows them to do."
After a devastating wildfire season in 2000, the National Fire Plan encouraged communities to create Wildfire Protection Plans. Communities work with local, state, and federal fire managers to determine the threat and decide what actions to take to reduce the risk.
The Council of Western State Foresters identifies nearly 600 Utah communities at risk. 102 communities have completed and approved protection plans in place. Approximately 50 additional plans are in progress. Some communities are just a few homes, others, like Emmigration Canyon and Sundance, are larger.
Jim Springer, Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands: "We let them know that they're at risk. Some show an interest in preparing for that, others don't."
Sundance, with numerous structures in the fire danger zone, was the first in Utah to develop such a plan. Fire destroyed a building. That caught their attention, and the community organized to put together a plan.
State and federal agencies worked with Sundance. Residents thinned plants near homes, installed a community siren system and drew up evacuation plans.
Jim Springer: "Lots of things were done there. They've received a national award for the work they've done. They're recognized as a fire wise community."
Last week, firefighters put out the first wildland fire of the year, an eight acre fire in Rich County.
