3:05 p.m. MDT August 15, 2021
More accurate mapping Sunday found that the Parley’s Canyon Fire east of Salt Lake City has burned 619 acres, much lower than the earlier estimate. Firefighters reported at about 2 p.m. that the spread of the fire has been “minimal” so far on Sunday.
7:37 a.m. MDT August 15, 2021
After sunset on Saturday the spread of the Parley’s Canyon Fire slowed after an aggressive attack by firefighters from the air and on the ground. Sunday morning fire authorities said night crews reported there was little overnight growth. There is no official accurate mapping yet but they estimate it has burned 1,500 acres.
The fire is east of Salt Lake City on the south side of Interstate 80, 10 miles east of I-215 between Lambs Canyon Road and Summit Park. It is approximately 4 miles west of Kimball Junction and 9 miles northwest of Park City.
The Northern Utah Type 3 Incident Management Team has assumed command of the 120 personnel on scene. Approximately 2,000 structures are threatened.
The weather forecast for the fire area Sunday could be concerning for firefighters. The elevation in the fire area ranges from 6,500 to over 8,000 feet. For the higher slopes the prediction is for 10 mph winds out of the west beginning at 9 a.m. increasing after noon to 14 mph from the northwest. The relative humidity will be around 20 percent with the temperature in the high 70’s at 8,000 feet. There will be 50 percent cloud cover decreasing to 10 percent after 3 p.m. After sunset the wind will slow to 7 mph but will shift to come out of the southeast after 11 p.m.
The video below shows a retardant drop by a single engine air tanker and one by Bomber 210, a 737 on loan from the New South Wales Rural Fire Service in Australia.
A look at some of the aircraft working the #ParleysCanyonFire ✈️ including @NSWRFS from Australia!@UtahWildfire | @fox13 pic.twitter.com/CTaH9Wpg4n
— ????? ?????? (@brian_schnee) August 14, 2021
6:50 p.m. MDT August 14, 2021
Interstate 80 at the Parley’s Canyon Fire east of Salt Lake City has reopened in both directions, but with lane restrictions.
The Parley’s Canyon Fire spread rapidly after it started Saturday at about 3 p.m. on the south side of Interstate 80, 10 miles east of I-215. The fire is between Lambs Canyon Road and Summit Park.
The US Forest Service reported at 3:20 p.m. Saturday that I-80 was closed in both directions. At that time the aircraft responding included 2 Very Large Air Tankers, 4 Large Air Tankers, 6 Single Engine Air Tankers, helicopters, and numerous ground resources from state and federal agencies.
Utah Fire Information said at about 4:45 p.m. MDT the fire had burned an estimated 2,500 to 3,000 acres. The areas under evacuation orders included Summit Park, Pine Brook, Lambs Canyon, and Mill Creek affecting 6000-8000 homes. They said the fire was caused by a malfunctioning catalytic convertor which ejected hot particles along the highway. The photo above appears to show at least two origin locations which is consistent with that type of incident.
A Type 2 Incident Management Team has been requested, but that has to be approved first by the National Multi-Agency Coordinating Group in Boise under a new policy created July 18. A Type 3 IMT was ordered earlier.
One of the local TV stations had video of several aircraft dropping on the fire including the 737 on loan from Australia.