Cedar Hills fire continues burning while federal, state and local crews work toward containment

Yahoo

02-07-2025

CEDAR HILLS, Utah () — Crews worked on the Cedar Hills Fire throughout the night, and personnel are going to stay on duty throughout the weekend so they can get closer to fully containing the fire.
As of Wednesday evening, the Cedar Hills Fire was . Utah Fire Info reported that fireworks are the cause, and neighbors are also blaming fireworks in someone's back yard, one resident told ABC4.com.
American Fork Fire Battalion Chief Brandon Boshard told ABC4.com that they have not confirmed that the cause was fireworks, though they are certain that it was caused by humans. He said that it is an ongoing investigation, and they are working to make sure that it was not caused by fireworks.
Neighbors living by the fire like Barabara Valles are relieved that their homes are still standing.
'We were like, Guys, it's fire! At the back of the house, all up to the mountain, and then we ran back to one of the boys' rooms, because it's just right there, and it was a huge flame going down, and we were like oh my gosh,' Valles said.
According to , the Cedar Hills Fire showed 'some activity' overnight, but it remained within the perimeter that firefighters had established Wednesday.
FIRE WATCH: Cedar Hills fire at 20% containment, 'close to being a catastrophic event'
Crews are on scene today, working to secure the fireline. The city of that management of the fire has been turned over to State and Federal agencies.
Utah Fire Info stated that smoke may still be visible but asked the public not to report the smoke. Cedar Hills city also told the public that the fire area is being monitored by on-site resources, and the public should not enter the fire area so that ongoing firefighting operations can continue.
The city of Cedar Hills requested that residents NOT use pressurized irrigation Thursday June 26, 'to allow our tank storage and PI system to recover from the demands placed on the overall system in the firefighting efforts.'
The city also extended thanks to all the first responders who answered the call to help with the Cedar Hills Fire, and they stated that the quick response from other agencies and air support made a difference in preventing the fire from spreading further.
They also reminded citizens to be vigilant with anything that can cause a spark or fire–cigarettes, fireworks, dragging chains, etc.
'We saw first-hand how quickly our community can be impacted by a wildfire! PLEASE BE SAFE!' the city urged on social media.
Tuesday, another human caused brush fire broke out in Spanish Fork. The city says it's under control now, after temporary evacuations were ordered out of precaution.
'Remember to remind the kids, don't play with fire sticks or matches, or you have to take care of that,' Barabara Valles said.
Over in Tooele County, the North Tooele Fire District called for help on social media after they battled 19 outside fires in a week–all human caused, they said, adding, 'your first responders are busy, tired, and stressed.'
'We're starting to see these kind of fire danger, it doesn't take much to start a fire.' Tooele County Fire Warden Dan Walton told ABC4.com.
Walton also showed us some maps showing where you can and cannot light fireworks, but that might change before the Fourth of July, he said.
Captain Brant Hancuff of Salt Lake City Fire Department also gave a safety demonstration about fireworks, in order to show just how quickly they can get out of hand.
'This demonstration shows the mannequin holding the firework and what can happen to the individual if they hold that firework,' he said. 'We're also going to do sparklers. Even though sparklers seem very safe, they burn very hard.'
Firefighters said that they won't ever stop fighting fires, but they need all hands on deck with preventing fires.
Fire Battalion Chief Boshard reminded that there are serious consequences for starting fires. In the case of previous fires caused by humans, the person who caused the fire was required to pay for the financial cost of fighting the fire, and he said that was a possibility in this case as well. He also stated that the cost for the Cedar Hills fire will likely be seven figures due to the air support used to fight the fire.
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