Fire Management

 

Current Fires 

The investigation of the Yellow Lake Fire that burned 33,173 acres east of Kamas, Utah this fall has been completed. The following statement has been released by the Forest Service.

“An investigation conducted by the United States Forest Service Law Enforcement and Investigations concluded the Yellow Lake Fire was accidentally caused by equipment use associated with a timber sale on the Heber-Kamas Ranger District of the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest.”

The Yellow Lake Fire Burned Area Response (BAER) report has also been completed. A summary is provided below.  

The USDA Forest Service assessed impacts of the Yellow Lake Fire on the soil within the burned area and released an analysis that categorizes the level of soil damage across the affected landscape.

The soil burns severity map, created using remote sensing imagery and field data, identifies four levels of soil burn severity:

  • Unburned/Very Low: Minimal soil damage, with intact surface layers.
  • Low: Moderate soil damage, with some loss of surface plants but intact topsoil.
  • Moderate: Significant soil damage, with substantial loss of plants and potential damage to near-surface roots.
  • High: Severe soil damage, with complete loss of plants and deep root damage, making the soil highly susceptible to erosion.

Approximately 86% of the 33,173-acre burned area exhibits low or very low soil burn severity. While 14% of the area experienced moderate damage, less than 1% suffered high severity burns.

The BAER team will use this information to predict post-fire runoff, erosion, and sedimentation. Areas with moderate to high soil burn severity may experience increased runoff and erosion, particularly during heavy rainfall events. The Forest Service is committed to monitoring the affected area and implementing restoration plans to less potential impacts and promote long-term recovery of the ecosystem.

The Yellow Lake Fire started on Sept 28, 2024 near Yellow Lake, east and south of Mill Hollow Reservoir on the Heber-Kamas Ranger District Yellow and is located 10 miles southeast of Francis, Utah 

The Yellow Lake Fire is 100% contained 

For the current information pertaing to area, campground, road, trail, trailhead and parking area/lot closures due to the Yellow Lake Closure.
 

Yellow Lake Fire information is also posted on the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest, Ashley National Forest and UtahFireInfo Facebook Pages

http://www.facebook.com/USFSUWCNF
http://www.facebook.com/AshleyNationalForest
www.facebook.com/UtahWildfire

When fires start or there is an incident happening on the Uinta-Wasatch Cache National Forest, the public information officers typically try to notify the public via the UWC Forest Facebook. Additionally, Utah Fire Info Twitter and Facebook may share information about new and ongoing fires on the Ashley National Forest.  As the incident evolves, it may be listed on either Inciweb and UtahFireInfo.  

Utah Fire Info is a one stop shop for fires all over Utah.  It has current fire information, fire restrictions and how to report a fire.  This page is a joint effort by county, state, and federal land management agencies to provide timely, updated fire information in one location. 
 

Local Information

The Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forests utilize a variety of fire management tools including fire suppression, fire prevention and fuels management.  The use of these tools, in combination, enhances protection of forest resources, homes and adjacent lands.

State Fire Information

Regional Fire Information

The Great Basin Coordination Center (GBCC) is the focal point for coordinating the mobilization of resources for wildland fire and other incidents throughout the Great Basin Geographic Area. The Great Basin Geographic Area encompasses Utah, Nevada, Idaho-south of the Salmon River, the western Wyoming mountains and the Arizona Strip. GBCC is located in Salt Lake City, UT, and provides Intelligence and Predictive Services related products for use by the wildland fire community for purposes of wildland fire and incident management decision-making.

National Fire Information

The following map is produced by the National Wildfire Coordinating Group and is hosted on the National Fire Situational Awareness page, where users may access the map in a full browser view. Additional incident specific information may also be accessed at InciWeb.

Prescribed Fire

The use of prescribed fire is a growing program intended to return fire to the ecosystem to restore healthy ecosystems and reduce the potential for catastrophic wildfires. A healthy ecosystem is more resistant to severe fire, disease, and insect infestations.  Forest fire managers consider each fire start on a case by case basis. Fires will either be suppressed, or will be managed to achieve forest management plan objectives. Fire suppression is not always the answer, as this can create unnatural levels of fuel buildup that is difficult to manage safely and can create more damaging fires in the future. Some wildfires will be managed to achieve objectives, such as reducing future fire danger, restoring forest health, or to run their natural course within Wilderness. Fire removes accumulations of leaves and needles, grasses, shrubs, brush, limbs, branches and logs and often improves wildlife habitat.



Evanston/Mt. View Ranger Districts
 

Heber-Kamas Ranger District:


Logan and Ogden Ranger Districts

Pleasant Grove Ranger District

Salt Lake Ranger District



Success Stories

2018 Willow Creek wildfire, Heber-Kamas Ranger District

Spanish Fork Ranger District - The Pole Creek and Bald Mountain Fires Facilitated Learning Analysis is now available. The intent of the analysis is to learn from our experiences, develop lessons learned, determine what could have been done differently, and improve future practices. The facilitated Learning Analysis identifies key learning themes that will be used by the Forest Service to improve decision making in fire management.