PARLEYS CANYON, Utah, Aug. 15, 2021 (Gephardt Daily) — The Federal Emergency Management Agency has signed off on using federal funds to fight a growing wildfire burning in Salt Lake and Summit counties.
In a statement announcing the authorization, FEMA said that it has determined the Parleys Canyon Fire “threatened such destruction that it would constitute a major disaster.”
According to FEMA, as of Saturday evening the fire was threatening between six and eight thousand homes were being threatened by the more than 2,500 acre wildfire and roughly 10,000 people were under mandatory evacuation orders.
Utah Fire Info lists the areas under evacuation as Summit Park, Pine Brook, Lambs Canyon and Mill Creek.
Summit County Sheriff Justin Martinez urged everyone to evacuate:
Senator Mitt Romney also tweeted to add “As this devastating fire spreads through Parley’s Canyon, I encourage Utahns to stay safe and avoid the area to allow fire personnel access.”
Another area Utahns will want to avoid Sunday is Jordanelle State Park. The state’s Department of Natural Resources is closing the park all day so fire fighting crews can use the reservoir in their containment efforts.
The Utah Highway Patrol reported the fire started Saturday afternoon near I-80 in the area of Lamb’s Canyon.
According to Utah Fire, the fire “was determined to be caused by equipment. A catalytic convertor in poor working order ejected hot particles along the roadside.”
