Pole Creek Fire (2018)

Pole Creek Fire
Location Uinta National Forest, Juab County. Utah, United States
(12 miles [19 km] northeast of Nephi)
Coordinates 39°48′22″N 111°39′40″W / 39.806°N 111.661°W / 39.806; -111.661Coordinates: 39°48′22″N 111°39′40″W / 39.806°N 111.661°W / 39.806; -111.661
Statistics[1]
Cost $4.7 million
Date(s) September 6, 2018 (2018-09-06) –  ()
Burned area 98,642 acres (399.19 km2)[1]
Cause Lightning
Buildings
destroyed		 0
Map
Start location of Pole Creek Fire
Pole Creek Fire (2018) (the US)

The Pole Creek Fire was a lightning-caused fire in Juab, Sanpete, and Utah counties in central Utah in the Western United States. The fire is the largest in Utah in 2018.[2] The fire was first reported on Thursday September 6, 2018. It merged with the Bald Mountain Fire on Monday September 17, 2018.[3] The Bald Mountain Fire caused mandatory evacuation of two cities: Elk Ridge and Woodland Hills. The Pole Creek Fire triggered mandatory evacuations for the Covered Bridge Community of the Spanish Fork Canyon along with the Diamond Fork Canyon and Right Fork Hobble Creek Canyon areas.[4]

Timeline

August 2018

The Bald Mountain Fire was started by lightning on August 24, 2018.[5]

September 2018

The Pole Creek Fire was started by lightning on September 6, 2018.[1][2] On September 12, high winds and low relative humidity caused both the Pole Creek and Bald Mountain fires to expand rapidly, threatening the communities of Elk Ridge and Woodland Hills.[6] [5] On September 17, 2018, the two fires were confirmed to have combined.[3]

Impacts

Evacuations

Both fires have led to the evacuation of more than 2,000 homes and around 6,000 people.[7]

Transportation

The fire closed U.S. Route 6 in Spanish Fork Canyon and U.S. Route 89 (from Thistle south to the Utah-Sanpete county line for several days.[3] Several other canyon roads in the area are also closed.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Pole Creek Fire". inciweb.nwcg.gov. Bureau of Land Management. Retrieved 21 Sep 2018.
  2. 1 2 Williams, Linda; Nielsen, Liesl (18 Sep 2018). "Fire updates: Pole Creek and Bald Mountain fires burn over 90K acres combined". ksl.com. Salt Lake City: Deseret Digital Media. Retrieved 18 Sep 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 Reavy, Pat (17 Sep 2018). "Officials becoming optimistic in battle against combined Utah County fires". Deseret News. Salt Lake City: Deseret Digital Media. Retrieved 18 Sep 2018.
  4. ↑ Klopfenstein, Jacob (16 Sep 2018). "Fire updates: US 6 remains closed; Right fork of Hobble Creek Canyon under evacuation". ksl.com. Salt Lake City: Deseret Digital Media. Retrieved 18 Sep 2018.
  5. 1 2 "Bald Mountain". inciweb.nwcg.gov. Bureau of Land Management. Retrieved 21 Sep 2018.
  6. ↑ "Pole Creek Fire Update 9-13-18". inciweb.nwcg.gov. Bureau of Land Management. Retrieved 21 Sep 2018.
  7. ↑ Williams, Carter; Williams, Linda (17 Sep 2018). "Fire updates: Road closures, evacuations remain as crews battle Utah blazes". ksl.com. Salt Lake City: Deseret Digital Media. Retrieved 17 Sep 2018.



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