Sevier County residents watch skies, hillside as Widemouth 2 Fire approaches

ELSINORE, Sevier County — Residents expressed concerns about smoke and the approaching Widemouth 2 Fire on Tuesday as crews said the massive wildfire had expanded to more than 79,000 acres.

According to fire spokesman Karl Hunt with Great Basin Team 2, the fire was mapped Tuesday at 79,313 acres, a gain of nearly 11,000 acres from Monday.

The fire remained 0% contained, he said.

The skies over Elsinore Tuesday were smoky, and residents said the fire in recent days had rained ash on them, leaving them worried about what could happen in the days to come with word that the flames were within several miles of their houses.

"We were driving in it last night, and it felt like we were driving in a snowstorm," said Jan Hembury. "The ash was falling so quickly, and it was crazy. It was scary."

Hembury and her other friends said they were talking about the fire at lunch.

"That fire is just a tornado on that other side," said Wesley Gallegos. "The half-burned leaves that are landing in our yards — how far are those leaves traveling and going to start other fires? It does make it worrisome."

Gallegos told KSL the fire's swift progress left everyone concerned.

"You've seen the fire just yesterday go over 7 miles, and we're about 7 miles now from the closest point to Elsinore," she said.

Hunt said firefighters were planning to brief residents in Sevier County on Tuesday evening at the Richfield Snow College Sorensen Administration Building.

He acknowledged expansion of the fire was possible.

"The winds are going to shift from out of the north-northwest, and that's going to line up with the topography, and we could see some fire growth based off of that," Hunt said.

The fire also turned destructive to property on Monday.

Gary and Liz Smith told KSL their cabin burned after 5:30 p.m., and they shared home camera footage showing the flames approaching and igniting the property.

Hunt said it was likely multiple cabins and secondary structures had been affected by the Widemouth 2 Fire.

"There's a lot of secondary structures up there, cabins," Hunt explained during an afternoon briefing with reporters. "We do know that some have been impacted but to what scale we are unsure of at this time. When it's safe for crews to get in there and do those assessments, we'll get people in to assess what the condition and impacts on those structures are."

In Sevier County, Joseph Mayor Jared Campbell said springs on the mountain tie into the town's water infrastructure, and he said it was unclear what would happen if the fire burned over those.

"It is definitely concerning for us," Campbell said.

He noted that I-70 stood between the hillside and towns like Joseph and Elsinore, and he was optimistic fire crews could continue to protect the area.

"I'm hopeful," he said. "We're just going to do the best we can."

In Elsinore, Hembury was also placing hope in fire teams.

"It sounds like they're doing everything they can do, and we really appreciate that," Hembury said. "Hopefully they can contain it. Pray for rain."

Related topics