LOCAL NEWS

Firefighters: Liberty Fire Starts At Gun Range, Spreads To 780 Acres On First Day

Aug 30, 2018, 10:58 PM | Updated: 10:58 pm

LIBERTY, Utah – Firefighters said a fire sparked at a gun range Thursday and quickly spread up the hillside, leading to the evacuation of as many as a dozen people as the flames spread in the direction of Powder Mountain Resort.

Liberty Fire

Weber County spokesperson Holin Wilbanks said the fire had burned 780 acres by Thursday night, and the fire was zero percent contained.

Neighbors in Liberty could only watch as the fire spread.

“The flames — I bet you they were 100-feet high when they hit the trees,” Jared Montgomery said. “It only took an hour for it to go over the top.”

Horse trainer Darrell Brown said he was keeping a close eye on the fire and the close to 40 horses under his care.

Horse trainer Darrell Brown said he was keeping a close eye on the fire and the close to 40 horses under his care.

“If we had to go, we’d be in trouble,” Brown said. “Am I going to sleep tonight? Nope.”

Brown was also monitoring cattle on the property as he worried about winds potentially changing directions overnight.

Liberty Fire

“If the fire comes over the hill, get out the barbecue sauce because they’re not coming out,” Brown said.

Montgomery and Brown both said this was the second brush fire to start at the gun range this summer.

“They shoot there from dusk ‘til dawn, 24 hours a day, every day of the week — boom, boom, boom, boom,” Brown said. “I don’t have a problem with firearms, I don’t have a problem with the fire range, but this time of year there’s just no reason to have it.”

Wilbanks said while the fire appeared to have started at the gun range, the exact cause remained under investigation.

Neighbors praised the efforts of firefighters, who got on scene quickly and brought air support with them.

“I thought they’d all be scattered out doing the other ones,” Montgomery said. “They’re doing a great job fighting it.”

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Firefighters: Liberty Fire Starts At Gun Range, Spreads To 780 Acres On First Day