TOOELE COUNTY, Utah, June 18, 2022 (Gephardt Daily) — Fire crews are battling a group of wind-driven grass fires, which charred hundreds of acres and brought traffic to a halt on I-80 and SR-201 throughout the day and into the night, Friday, and early Saturday.
The blaze, dubbed the Lakeshore Fire, reached 400 acres in a matter of hours after merging with another blaze named the Lone Fire between Lake Point and Interstate 80’s intersection with State Road 20, according to social media posts by Utah Fire Info.
An update issued Saturday morning said the Lakeshore Fire did not grow overnight.
“Size is estimated at 400 acres and it is approximately 90% contained. Hand crews, water tender, and engines will be working towards full containment and control today.”
The Cypress Fire, burning east of the Lakeshore Fire, was at an estimated 100 acres in size.
“Multiple ground resources are on-scene, including engines, water tenders, & hand crews from State of Utah, BLM, & Unified Fire. Air resources are grounded due to wind,” Utah Fire Info tweeted.
At 9:57 p.m. UFI reported the “CypressFire has jumped the roadway, threatening the Rio Tinto Smelter.”
Just after 10 p.m., the Utah Highway Patrol said I-80 had reopened, but “Intermittent closures may still be necessary as crews work in the area.
“We encourage motorists to avoid the area and use alternate routes,” the UHP post said.
At 3:04 a.m. UDOT tweeted, “Eastbound and westbound SR 201 are closed at the SR 202 Jct. due to a fire. Motorists are advised to use I-80 as an alternate route.”
Gephardt Daily will update this developing story as more information becomes available.
For the latest in emergency traffic information go to the UDOT website.
