SOUTHERN UTAH – Color Country Interagency firefighters have been actively engaged fighting 11 fires today, both human and lightning caused.
Human caused fires along I-15 corridor
The first in a series of fires occurred between 9:30-10:30 a.m. scattered along the Interstate 15 corridor between St. George and Cedar City, Color Country Acting Dispatch Manager Ricky Smith said.
“We believe they were human caused,” Smith said of the I-15 fires, “we’re investigating.”
Although Smith declined to comment on the specific cause, he said they appear to have been unintentional.
“We think it was accidental,” Smith said.
Wildland Fires
All the rest of the fires appear to be lightning caused, Smith said, most occurring midafternoon and following with the onset of thunderstorms.
The two largest that remain uncontained are a 3-5-acre wildland fire near Enterprise that started around 6 p.m., and a 2-acre fire burning in the Dammeron Valley area that started around 7 p.m.
Those fires are being fought by federal, state and local firefighting assets. Local agencies on the Dammeron Valley fire include those from the Northwestern Special Service District.
The Enterprise fire currently has five engines and the Dammeron Valley Fire has seven engines engaged.
In Zion National Park , Smith said a fire burning one tenth of an acre near Kolob Reservoir off the Rim Trail has not yet been contained, although it is receiving rain and support from a firefighting helicopter.
Except for the Enterprise, Dammeron Valley and Zion fires, most have been contained.
“Several of the fires have occurred fairly close to residential areas,” Smith said, “but we’re not thinking they’re threatened right now.”
There have been no road closures, no evacuations, no reports of injuries or property damage.
“So far,” Smith said, “everything has been confined to wildlands.”
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