Fire, winter storm warnings hit Utah at same time


34 photos
Save Story

Show 3 more videos

Leer en español

Estimated read time: 5-6 minutes

This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.

SALT LAKE CITY — A frenzied last push of the waning days of spring has weather watchers pulled in two directions, juggling red-flag warnings for fire danger in a big chunk of Utah and forecasting snow for the central and northern mountains.

"Our weather map is kind of crazy. You see everything on there at once," said Nanette Hosenfeld, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Salt Lake City. "It is just spring, but it does not feel like spring because it is June."

The wind ahead of a spring storm prompted the agency Monday to issue a red-flag warning for significant portions of the state, including the western half from the Idaho border to Millard County, a strip along all of the central and southeastern border with Colorado, and in southwestern Utah.

Hosenfeld said the warnings are the 10th of the season, propelled from a combination of extra dry fuels exacerbated by multiple years of drought.

"It's just dry," she said.

As the coming storm gathered momentum Monday, the agency issued a winter weather advisory for Tuesday, noting that the winter-style event will bring up to 6 inches of snow to elevations above 8,000 feet in the mountains of northern and central Utah.

The storm, which will deliver valley rain, will drop temperatures 15 to 20 degrees below what is normal for this time of year, with highs along the Wasatch Front expected in the upper 50s to 60s.

Gusty winds and an unsettled weather pattern over the past several weeks have prompted multiple fire agencies throughout the state to issue fire and fireworks restrictions in hopes of quelling a potentially volatile season in which man plays a part.

In Weber County, fire agencies note there have already been a few dozen grass fires in the past two weeks, with at least 13 blazes that have threatened homes or other buildings. Most of them have been human- caused, authorities said.

On Monday, Ogden, the Weber Fire District and the Northview Fire Department announced independent restrictions on fires and fireworks that when combined form one solid boundary from the southern end of Weber County to its northern edge.

Fireworks are banned east of Harrison Boulevard and in the upper Ogden Valley, including the towns of Huntsville, Liberty and Eden.

Fire, winter storm warnings hit Utah at same time
Photo: Jeffrey D. Allred/Deseret News

Brandon Thueson, fire marshal with Weber Fire District, said the restrictions will likely stay in place through July and into August and be lifted only if conditions ease. Firework-restricted areas are also in play in Salt Lake City, and similar restrictions are in effect elsewhere in Salt Lake County.

High fire danger and dry weather led the National Forest Service and multiple other agencies Monday to warn of restrictions that will go into force Wednesday in southwest Utah and northern Arizona. Those restrictions impact sections of the Dixie National Forest in what's known as Color Country, unincorporated Washington County and Zion National Park.

Lightning strikes have already sparked multiple blazes across Utah, including the Cow Hollow Fire that began Friday about 10 miles south- southwest of Fruitland, Duchesne County.

The fire is burning on steep slopes in a part of the Ashley National Forest that is accessible only by foot. Firefighters must hike 6 miles from their base camp to reach the fire lines, according to Ashley National Forest spokesman Louis Haynes.

Chris Deets, incident commander-trainee with the Uintah Basin Type III Team, said the fact that a lightning strike was able to ignite heavy timber this early in the season is unusual.

"Typically this time of year we don't have timber fires in this area like this, so it is drier than normal," he said.

Sagebrush and grasses in the Cow Hollow area are still "greening up," Deets said, which has slowed the fire's spread. Those smaller fuel sources are expected to dry out in the next few weeks.

"For this country, our heavy fire season starts the end of June," Deets said. "If this fire would have happened two weeks from now, it would be a different scenario."


Our weather map is kind of crazy. You see everything on there at once. It is just spring, but it does not feel like spring because it is June.

–Nanette Hosenfeld, National Weather Service meteorologist


Crews expect to have the Cow Hollow Fire fully contained by the end of their shift Tuesday and were expecting the snow to lend a big assist.

Another blaze that began Monday afternoon in the mountains above Alpine was quickly doused, but not before a film crew working near Sliding Rock had to be evacuated.

Lone Peak Fire spokesman Joe McRae said the 2-acre blaze that burned above homes was a half-mile away from any structures, but crews were not taking any chances.

Two brush crews were sent to the fire, but because of the rocky and difficult terrain, crews had to hike in to fight the blaze.

Lightning also caused a 5,000-acre fire in Dugway in early June, and a fire in Millard County sparked by a lightning strike burned 725 acres before it was fully contained.

In Draper, a dozen homes were threatened last week by a hillside fire that is believed to be human-caused.

Jason Curry, spokesman for the state Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands, said the fire season is shaping up much like that of 2013 — active and challenging.

"We are well underway and have had several large fires," Curry said. "What that is telling us is the light grasses are curing, or have cured in many places, and they are very receptive to any type of spark. We definitely want to make sure people are being careful out there."

Contributing: Geoff Liesik, Peter Samore, Mike Anderson

Photos

Related links

Related stories

Most recent Utah stories

Related topics

Utah
Amy Joi O'Donoghue

    STAY IN THE KNOW

    Get informative articles and interesting stories delivered to your inbox weekly. Subscribe to the KSL.com Trending 5.
    By subscribing, you acknowledge and agree to KSL.com's Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

    KSL Weather Forecast