North Summit Fire District Chief Ben Nielson said the fire, east of Echo Reservoir, was difficult to access because it was on a steep hillside, and there’s only one route to get into or out of the community of mostly secondary homes.
Several neighboring agencies assisted North Summit Fire, including fire departments from Morgan and Wasatch counties and Wyoming’s Uinta County, Mountain Green Fire Protection District, Park City Fire District, the Summit County Sheriff's Office and state resources.
Nielson said the aggressive response helped firefighters control the flames quickly.
By nightfall, the fire was entirely contained. Firefighters worked into the night to put out any remaining hot spots.
During the fire, the sheriff’s office notified nearby homeowners to be ready in case of evacuation, while fire crews put engines outside any buildings that could be threatened. No structures were damaged and no injuries were reported.
Nielson said Saturday’s storms made for a busy night for North Summit: it responded to “at least three” cases of lightning igniting, but this fire was the main one.
Lightning also caused a small fire in Wasatch County near SkyRidge on Saturday evening; Wasatch Fire District Chief Eric Hales said it was contained in under an hour.
Elsewhere in Summit County, the cooler temperatures and rainfall helped quiet fire activity on the Beulah Fire, which has burned more than 5,700 acres in the High Uintas Wilderness since it started Aug. 7.
On Sunday, officials said the Beulah Fire is 55% complete.
Also Sunday, management of the wildfire changed hands as Great Basin Team 4 handed off operations to Nevada Team 1.
Firefighters’ work includes extinguishing hot spots, clearing fuels and strengthening fire lines.
