Evacuations Lifted In Tollgate Canyon Wildfire
Jul 31, 2018, 12:40 AM | Updated: 12:43 am
SILVER SUMMIT, Utah – Homeowners who live in Tollgate Canyon in Summit County were allowed back into their neighborhoods after a fire ripped through the hillside.
Summit County spokesperson Krachel Murdock told KSL the wind played a tricky obstacle in tackling the Tollgate Fire Monday.
“The winds were very shifty. The fire has been jumping because of the wind,” Murdock said. “This fire has jumped three times, but the have crews attacking it from every angle.”
Murdock said there were 15 fire trucks on the ground, seven forms of aircraft doing water and retardant drops from the sky, and three bulldozers helping to build fire trenches.
“The fire is burning on private land, and we have evacuated four homes on Forest Meadow Road,” Murdock said.
The Tollgate Fire was at its peak during the time many homeowners were returning home.
Katherine Suessman received a phone call about the fire while she was at work.
“It’s terrifying. The flames were extremely high,” Suessman said.
Travis Petler, also a homeowner in Tollgate Canyon, watched the fire grow from his front yard.
“It was making massive jumps – starting new blazes that seemed 1,000 feet long,” Petler said.
“There are 400 households up there,” Murdock said. “Two hundred of those are residents who live in the canyon year round. We are not letting them up to their homes until we have this fire under control.”
Fire crews started a controlled back burn to prevent the original fire from reaching Interstate 80.
“We made significant progress with the back burn,” Murdock said.
By 9 p.m., all evacuations had been lifted.
The Tollgate Fire remained at 10 percent containment, and a total of 287 acres were reported burned as of Monday night.
Two fire trucks and numerous firefighters planned to spend the night watching hot spots and keeping a close eye on the neighborhoods near the burn area.
The cause of the fire was still under investigation.
No one was injured and no structures were damaged.