Wildfire updates: Fire causes delays on I-80 near Tooele

SALT LAKE CITY — The Skull Flat Fire kept burning on Sunday morning, having grown somewhat since Saturday. Meanwhile, firefighters around the state worked to put out other smaller blazes.

The fire in Skull Flat grew by about 150 acres on Saturday, taking it to about 1,667 acres in total by Saturday night, according to Nick Howell with the Bureau of Land Management. The lightning-caused blaze still is not threatening any structures or infrastructure and no roads have been closed.

On Saturday, firefighters were able to secure about a mile on the south end of the Skull Flat fire, Howell said. Crews on Sunday hope to secure the remaining mile of indirect fire line by cleaning up inaccessible areas of the perimeter.

Fire officials hope this will help contain the south side of the fire, Howell said. They expect that the blaze's behavior will continue Saturday's trend of torching trees and making short fire runs, and smoke can be expected in Beaver and nearby areas.

As of Sunday morning, the Skull Flat fire was 50% contained.

Meanwhile, the Big Hollow Fire continued to rage near Heber in Wasatch County on Saturday, according to Utah Fire Info. Yesterday, the fire covered 100 acres and was 5% contained. No new updates have been given since then.

A new fire, which has already been extinguished, was lit Sunday morning at around 1 a.m., according to North View Fire District. A group of people tossed fireworks over the side of the first turnout on the North Ogden side of the North Ogden Divide.

A fire broke out and burned about 1/4 of an acre through oak brush and light grasses, according to North View Fire District. Despite the wind, the blaze was contained within 10 minutes and has since been extinguished.

Though a vehicle description was given by witnesses, the offenders' car was traveling too fast to get a license plate, according to North View Fire District. Officials urge residents to be vigilant and report any suspicious activity or further information about the incident to North View Fire District or the Weber County Sheriff's office.

The 650 North off-ramp in Davis County on I15 Northbound was temporarily closed due to a fire caused by a broken down car.

According to Utah Highway Patrol Sgt. Rick Sharder, the driver parked his vehicle on the side of the road near weeds. The car exhaust started the fire and winds carried it east affecting the exit. No damage was done to the car and officials were able to move it. Fire crews arrived to the scene to help extinguish the fire.

Eastbound I-80 near Tooele was temporarily closed due to wildfire smoke causing visibility issues. Officials reported that troopers assisted firefighters at the scene with lane closures.

The fire was first reported around 4:45 p.m. Several agencies, including Unified Fire and Grantsville Fire Department, responded to the scene, Tooele County Emergency Services emergency manager Bucky Whitehouse said.

Heavy south winds were causing issues controlling the fire, Whitehouse added. Officials estimated the fire to be at 40 acres, Whitehouse said, and added that a fire investigator was requested to investigate what caused the fire.

No structures are threatened and there were no injuries reported, Whitehouse said.

All lanes were reopened just before 7 p.m. Whitehouse said crews were in the process of putting out hot spots.

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