Wildfire Update – Willow Patch, Sunday, 07/01, 10 am

Wildfire Update – Willow Patch

For Immediate Release                                   

July 1, 2018 at 10:00 am

Contact:

Beth McClanahan

Willow Patch Information Officer
(760) 791-5804

Summary: Crews continue making good progress on the east and west sides of the fire. Yesterday, the fire grew during the active burn period. Due to smoke, Garkane Energy power lines serving Wayne County and portions of Sevier County including Burrville, Koosharem and Fishlake Basin were impacted. At this time, power has been restored, but there may be intermittent outages that would affect services in those areas. Fire activity will increase today as the afternoon temperature will rise and wind will increase. Smoke will be visible from I70 and the surrounding areas.

Highway 24 remains open; however, there will be fire traffic in the area. Please use caution and heed signs and law enforcement. Public and firefighter safety is our first priority. The Sevier County Sheriff’s Office has closed several roads in the area. Please be aware that smoke, with the evening inversion layer, will lay down at night and visibility will be limited. Fire managers are asking the public to stay out of the area.

Start Date: Friday, June 29, 2018- approximately 1:00p.m.

Location: Highway 24, approximately mile marker 19

Jurisdiction: Bureau of Land Management and State of Utah.

Fire Size: Approximately 4,551 acres (Note: one acre is equivalent to one football field)

Cause: Human Caused- Under Investigation.

Fire Behavior: Yesterday we had extreme fire behavior and the fire remained active overnight.

Closures: The Sevier County Sheriff’s Offices has closed several roads within the fire area.

Structures Threatened: Power lines remain threatened. No structures immediately threatened.

Percent Contained: 50%

Fuels: Pinyon and Juniper, Brush, and Grass.

Fire Crews/Resources: 4 Crews; 3 Helicopters; 8 Engines; 3 Dozers; Total of 172 personnel

Evacuations: No evacuations.

Injuries: No injuries reported.

For more information on fires in Utah visit www.utahfireinfo.gov. #willowpatchfire

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