Crews reach 23% containment of Rocky Canyon Fire, but over 500 remain evacuated

HENEFER, Summit County — More than 500 people remain evacuated because of a fast-moving wildfire burning through the Wasatch Back, but fire crews have now contained nearly a quarter of its perimeter.

The Rocky Canyon Fire is now approximately 23% contained, said Sierra Hellstrom, a spokesperson for the U.S. Forest Service and Northern Utah Type 3 Incident Management Team, during a briefing on Tuesday.

"We understand last night was probably a little bit of a scary night for people in Henefer. The fire was highly visible from the community, hence the reason we pushed that evacuation," she said. "We take evacuations very seriously and only do those at a time when there really is an imminent threat."

The fire has burned 13,601 acres, slightly less than was estimated on Monday, following more accurate mapping that was carried out between late Monday and early Tuesday.

Containment was achieved within the state Route 66, East Canyon and Hogsback areas, toward Morgan and the southern and western edges of the fire, Hellstrom said. Several homes and East Canyon State Park are located within the section now contained, following controlled burns that were strategically carried out to stop the progress of the wildfire.

However, while there have been no known structures lost because of the fire, she warns that there are "quite a few" structures still threatened. The fire is also still progressing, reaching areas that are difficult to manage.

The fire began from an undetermined human cause on Friday, but spread rapidly over the weekend through strong winds that pushed the fire closer to communities like Henefer.

Close to 400 personnel are expected to be battling the blaze by the end of Tuesday. Helicopters may be used to shuttle firefighters to the tops of ridges to battle areas of the fire in difficult terrain to reach.

"This is a high-priority fire, and we are being treated as such in getting what we need," Hellstrom said.

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