Rain, cool weather dampen High Meadow, Mt. Emma fires; road closures lifted

The High Meadow Fire, located 55 miles southeast of St. George, Arizona Strip, Arizona, July 27, 2015 | Photo by Shawn Jaca, courtesy of BLM-Arizona Strip Field Office, St. George News

ST. GEORGE – Fire personnel continue to manage the High Meadow fire, approximately 55 miles southeast of St. George near Mt. Trumbull and Potato Valley, and Mt. Emma fire, 75 miles southeast of St. George, both on the Arizona Strip, although both lightning-caused fires are winding down and most management resources are being withdrawn.

The High Meadow Fire located 55 miles southeast of St. George  totaled 208 acres over the July 17 weekend. Recent rains delivered significant moisture have diminished the fire, St. George, Utah, July 17, 2015 | Map courtesy of BLM Arizona Strip District, St. George News
The High Meadow Fire located 55 miles southeast of St. George totaled 1,312 acres as of Aug. 10. Recent rain, high humidity and cooler temperatures have diminished the fire, now being managed under a Type IV Incident Command. | Map courtesy of BLM-Arizona Strip Field Office, St. George News

The High Meadow fire, 1,312 acres in size as of Monday, is being managed under a Type IV Incident Command structure to achieve both protection and natural resource objectives.

The Mt. Emma fire, sized at 4,200 acres on July 7, transitioned to a Type IV Incident Command at that time. Presently, fire managers are just monitoring the fire as there has been no visible smoke from the area for more than a week.

The Mt. Emma fire located 75 miles southeast of St. George, sized at 4,200 acres in early July, has had no smoke visible for over a week, as of Aug. 10, and fire managers are now just monitoring it. | Map courtesy of BLM-Arizona Strip Field Office, St. George News
The Mt. Emma fire located 75 miles southeast of St. George, sized at 4,200 acres in early July, has had no smoke visible for over a week, as of Aug. 10, and fire managers are now just monitoring it. | Map courtesy of BLM-Arizona Strip Field Office, St. George News

Generally, a Type IV command deals with a relatively small incident and involves: an initial attack on the fire – as do all incident types; several single resources which could be a single strike team or task force; one operational period, at least during the containment phase; mop up and control extending into additional periods as needed. 

Resources currently allocated to the High Meadow fire include one wildland fire module and two wildland fire engines, according to a news release Monday.

Cloud cover, cooler temperatures, higher humidity and rain over the past week have moderated fire activity. 

“Due to recent rain and limited fire activity, resources are demobilizing,” BLM-Arizona Strip District Fire Management Officer Mark Rosenthal said. “Those resources that remain are removing equipment no longer needed there. The fire will continue to be monitored until the fire is called out.”

The four BLM roads previously closed to public traffic near the High Meadow fire are now open, including BLM 1768, 1775, 1802, 1803, and 1804. 

Officials don’t plan to disseminate further updates on these fires, Monday’s news release said, unless significant changes occur.

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2015, all rights reserved.

 

 

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