July 15 Jacob City Fire Daily Update    Yesterday, crews on the northernmost edge of the fire improved fireline and began mop up operations in the lower elevations. Firefighters working along the northeastern perimeter near Edwards Pass made some progress into Soldier Canyon. Crews continued to work their way around a finger of fire just south of Solider Creek. The terrain is steep and very rugged, and firefighters are progressing at a steady, safe pace to increase the amount of containment along the fire perimeter. Today, firefighters will continue improving fireline, monitoring areas of containment, and making progress near Edwards Pass; south of Soldier Creek; and north of Bald Mountain. There are several helicopter missions planned for moving cargo and crews around the fire area to assist firefighters working in tougher terrain on the eastern and southeastern edges as weather allows.  Highly experienced crews will begin work removing dead trees in steep areas where they pose a danger to firefighters. Thunderstorms dropped moderate wetting rain in the fire area again last night; and while wetting rain at lower elevations in areas of juniper and scrub oak was helpful, rain at higher elevations failed to reach the ground due to the heavy tree canopy. Weather today will include another round of showers with the potential for wetting rain. Over the weekend, weather will be warmer and drier as temperatures rise with little to no chance of moisture. Next week, monsoonal moisture is expected to return to the area.

Yesterday, thunderstorms dropped moderate wetting rain in the fire area. Crews on the northernmost edge of the fire constructed fireline and worked to control some spotting. They also dug handline to control spread outside of the fire’s perimeter and received extra support from numerous water drops. With the help of engines, crews continued to construct handlines upslope from the bottom of Soldier Canyon toward Sharp Mountain. Firefighters expanded the area around a structure within the fire perimeter near Commodore Pass. Most of the perimeter is holding at the existing fireline, and firefighters will go direct where fuels and terrain allow. If there are locations with too much heat, helicopters may continue dropping water.

Weather today will remain hot and dry at lower elevations with temperatures over 100. Thunderstorms with monsoonal moisture will continue to move north across Utah and could cause erratic winds. While these storms may bring precipitation, it is possible that only minimal to moderate wetting rain will reach the fire area—especially at higher elevations. Crews will work to secure and hold existing perimeters in the event of extreme weather.

Today, the Bureau of Land Management West Desert District, Utah Division of Forestry, Fire & State Lands and Tooele County issued a fire prevention order restricting access to public lands in the vicinity of the Jacob City Fire. The fire is located east of the Town of Stockton on the slopes of the Oquirrh Mountains in Tooele County, Utah. The prevention order will remain in effect until the fire is declared controlled by the incident commander or otherwise officially rescinded.

The prevention order restricts public entry, recreation and unnecessary traffic near the Jacob City Fire, including: East of Copper Street and Gravel Site Road; East of Watercrossing Road and Queen of Hills Road; North of Ophir Canyon Road, and West of Serviceberry Canyon Road, South Fork Soldier Canyon Road, North Fork Soldier Canyon Road, and Water Fork Canyon Road; south of Southport Gulch; and Right Hand Fork of Settlement Canyon; all in Tooele County, Utah.
 
 Property owners, grazing permit holders and other citizens with need to access the area will be asked to coordinate with the incident commander to ensure safety. Officials have asked recreationalists and other public to leave the area to provide for public safety and support emergency fire suppression operations. 
 

The prevention order and accompanying map are posted on signs where public lands are accessed, online at https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8224/ and on Facebook and Twitter @UtahWiildfire, #JacobCityFire.

Local, state and federal fire officials urge Utahns to use their ‘Fire Sense’ to help prevent unwanted wildfires. For more information on preventing unwanted human caused wildfires, agency-specific restrictions and reference maps, visit www.utahfiresense.org and www.utahfireinfo.gov.

For more details on the prevention order, contact:

• Bureau of Land Management, West Desert District, 491 N John Glenn Rd, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, 801-320-8300

• Utah Division of Forestry, Fire & State Lands, 1594 W North Temple, Room 150, Salt Lake City, UT 84114, 801-538-4818

• Tooele County Sheriff’s Office, 1960 S Main St., Tooele, UT 84074, 435-882-5600 
 

ADDITIONAL MEDIA CONTACTS:

Kayli Yardley, Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands, 385-377-0336, kyardley@utah.gov Brittany Lopez, Tooele County, 435-843-3150, Brittany.lopez@tooeleco.org

Kim Smolt, Jacob City Fire Public Information Officer, 801-449-1778, 2022.jacobcity@firenet.gov 

 Yesterday, the fire experienced very dry, hot weather. With engine support, crews constructed handlines upslope from the bottom of Soldier Canyon. Crews also worked on fireline from Soldier Creek south toward Sharp Mountain, while other firefighters secured the area around a structure within the fire perimeter near Commodore Pass. Helicopters shuttled crews into areas of steep, inaccessible, terrain, and will continue to support firefighters over the next few days.Today, burning operations continue west of Bald Mountain. Most of the perimeter is still holding at the existing fireline, but firefighters will go direct where fuels and terrain allow. If there are areas with too much heat, helicopters may drop water to cool the fire edge.

Weather today will remain very hot and dry at lower elevations with temperatures again in the 100s. Thunderstorms will build up west of the fire area, causing erratic winds that could potentially drive some fire growth. While these storms may bring precipitation, little to no wetting rain is expected to reach the fire area. Crews will work to secure and hold existing perimeters in the event of extreme weather.
 
Great Basin Team 5 Type 2 Incident Management Team took command of the fire Tuesday night

Yesterday, the fire experienced favorable weather conditions for crews in the southwest corner to complete a burnout operation. This occurred in an unburned pocket of fuel that had potential for spotting from the main front of the fire. This successful operation will help the existing fireline hold during the next few periods of increased heat and wind. Helicopters were used throughout yesterday to complete bucket drops, crew shuttle, and providing crews with supplies.  

 

The fire is active at the Settlement Canyon ridge, with pockets of isolated torching and burning. Most of the perimeter is still holding at the existing fireline. Firefighters are going direct where fuels and terrain allows. In areas with too much heat, bucket work will continue to be utilized to cool the fire’s edge.  

 

Today’s weather is going to be much drier and temperatures, into the 100s. A high pressure is moving into the area, with potential for isolated thunderstorms. Little-to-no rain is expected with these storms, but potential for dry lightning. This also brings gusts up to 40mph possible. Crews will work diligently to secure and hold the existing perimeters during this extreme weather.  
 
At the end of shift today, Great Basin Team 5 Type 2 Incident Management Team will take command over the fire.  

Yesterday, weather worked in the favor of crews, seeing less active fire behavior throughout most of the shift. Air attack was able to get retardant lines around most of the perimeter. This greatly slowed fire progression and minimized the heat enough for crews to begin a more direct attack. Overnight the fire remained active, with interior pockets of timber burning. Crews remained throughout the night to monitor the fire. However, there was not much increase in acreage as most of the fire activity has been internal. 

 

Today helicopters will shuttle crews to the southwest side of the fire, as this terrain is difficult to access by vehicle or hiking. These crews will work to build handline, using the previously dropped fire retardant line. The highest priority remains the western side of the fire, closest to communities or main roads. Dozer line was completed near Soldier Canyon during yesterday’s shift. Thus far the dozer line has held, and fire managers anticipate it holding through today’s shift.  

 

We want to remind residents in both the Salt Lake Valley, Utah County Valley, and Tooele Valley that they are not in danger from this fire and its current trajectory. Smoke will continue to be visible until a higher containment is reached. Residents in Ophir and east of Copper Road in Stockton should be on alert.

Dry Rice Fire Final Update: July 14, 2022

07/14/2022
10:30 am

Size: 326 acres
Containment: 95%
Date Started: 7/11/2022

State resources from Texas A&M Forest Service (TAMFS) are returning to the Dry Rice Fire with two engines to continue mop-up operations and patrolling containment lines. Minimal to no smoke has been observed across the fire area and containment percentage is expected to increase. This will be the final update for the Dry Rice Fire. 

Dry Rice Fire Daily Update for July 13, 2022: 8:30 am

07/13/2022
8:30 am

Size: 300 acres
Containment: 85%
Date Started: 7/11/2022 

State resources from Texas A&M Forest Service (TAMFS) are returning to the Dry Rice Fire this morning to continue to mop-up and patrolling containment lines. Afternoon storms from the previous day produced wind outflows with little to no rainfall on the fire. Minimal smoke was observed across the fire area and containment lines have been widened and are looking good.  

July 13, 2022

Size: 38 acres
Containment: 100%
Date Started: July 10, 2022

Yesterday state resources from Texas A&M Forest Service (TAMFS) and Texas Intrastate Fire Mutual Aid System (TIFMAS) gridded and patrolled Three Aces Fire throughout the day. There were some heat sources that were found but were cooled off by fire crews.  Winds picked up for a short period of time, but they did not pose any threat to the containment lines.

Fire has been turned over to local command, all TAMFS and TIFMAS resources have cleared Three Aces Fire.

This site will no longer be updated.  Please contact local officials for any information needs. 

 

Forest Service News Release

Media Contacts: SM.FS.ASNF_PAO@usda.gov

Jeffrey Todd, Forest Public Affairs Officer 928-333-6263

Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests resources continue suppression response to Mesa Fire

Transition to a Type 4 Organization

Springerville, AZ, July 12th, 2022 — Fire personnel from the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests are on scene and continuing their response to the Mesa Fire, located on the Black Mesa Ranger District. The fire was initially reported by a USFS lookout on the 3rd of July. A lightning strike has been determined to be the cause. The fire is currently estimated at 2800 acres and is 25% contained. https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8217/

Management of the fire transitioned from a Type 3 to a Type 4 organizational structure this morning at 7:00 AM. The transition is indicative of reduced fire complexity, activity, and a downsizing of resources needed. All tactical firing operations are complete, including those along containment lines. Firefighters will focus on holding, mop-up, and patrolling. Crews will begin suppression repair moving into the rest of the week. Helicopters and unmanned drones were utilized in the tactical firing operations and dropped more than 3000 PSD (plastic sphere dispensers) spheres to burn unburned fuels in the interior of the fire perimeter where it is unsafe to place fire crews. These technologies allow for reduced risk to firefighter lives and wellbeing. Smoke is expected to be visible in the coming days, particularly from Hwy 260 and the community of Forest Lakes. An interactive smoke map at https://fire.airnow.gov/ allows you to zoom into your area to see the latest smoke conditions.

There is a Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) in effect, this restricts non-fire aircraft over the Mesa Fire until it is rescinded. This includes civilian drones and private planes. Unauthorized aircraft in the area can ground firefighting aircraft, hinder firefighting efforts, and can also result in criminal charges for the offender. If you fly, we can’t. For more information regarding the TFR please visit https://tfr.faa.gov/tfr2/list.html . The public is advised to avoid the area if possible. If travel near the area is necessary, please use caution on roadways, watch for heavy equipment in the area, and slow down. These steps increase safety for both the public and for firefighters responding in the area.

Stay up to date on news from the A - S at our website https://www.fs.usda.gov/asnf, on Twitter @A_SNFs and on facebook.com/apachesitgreavesnfs.

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