Park City Fire District Fire Marshal Mike Owens said the “extreme” rating means vegetation is getting drier and can more easily fuel fires. Warm temperatures and low humidity also contribute to the “extreme” fire danger.
“It's just kind of a little alarm bell that lets people know that they want to be a little bit more careful than they would otherwise be,” he said.
Owens says the rating is general for the county and fire danger can vary in localized areas.
“To be fair, we should take that with a little bit of a grain of salt, because we can have very localized conditions,” he said. “In some places we will have very, very dry fuels, and in other places where it's a little bit shadier, the fuels are a little less dry.”
High winds, low humidity and warm temperatures also recently spurred the National Weather Service to issue a red flag warning for the Wasatch Back. The warning means conditions are ideal for wildfires to spread rapidly.
The increased wildfire danger also prompted Park City to prohibit fireworks and open flames within city limits until November.
“If you had, like, what I would call a plug and play, like gas fireplace that you buy at Home Depot and hook up to a regular propane tank, that would be something under this prohibition that would require an operational fire permit,” Park City Municipal Fire Inspector Cherie Wellmon said.
Locals can get permits and inspections through the city’s building department. Wellmon said inspections help businesses and residents understand how to use devices safely and prevent fires.
“A large number of them do not allow them to be operated on combustible surfaces. So that would be like your wooden deck. So that's something to think about,” she said. “Then the other thing is, with nightly rentals, you know, do you know that that that device is staying where it was originally placed?”
It’s also best to keep devices away from low-hanging trees and furniture cushions.
The Summit County Council is still working to ban fireworks and open fires in its unincorporated areas. Unlike Park City, the county must go through the Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands to instate a ban. Owens said the paperwork is currently under review and if it’s approved, campfires will only be allowed in established campgrounds and permanent fire pits. Private residents using permanent fire pits must have running water nearby as well.
For updates on Summit County's fire outlook and conditions, Red Flag Warnings, prescribed burns and active fire updates, text SCFIREINFO to 888777.
