Frustration, Anxiety Expressed at Utah County Community Fire Meeting

SALEM, Utah – Smoke and flames created the backdrop to a community meeting at Salem Hills High School, where hundreds packed the auditorium to get the latest information about the Bald Mountain and Pole Creek fires. Thousands were evacuated when the fires exploded in size on Sept. 13.

“Anxious and we just want to go home,” evacuee Miranda Garcia said.

Garcia’s neighborhood is right on the edge of the evacuation zone. Half of her neighborhood was evacuated and the other half is still there. She was hopeful to learn at the meeting that she could go home, but she was told she needed to wait and listen to local officials.

People are happy that no homes have been destroyed, but there’s an underlying frustration surrounding that too. Evacuees are wondering if the threat has passed. Most people left their homes five days ago and haven’t been allowed back. Instead, they’re left waiting with no exact timeline of when they can go home.

“I’m not worried about my home, it’s more an inconvenience because, well, we’re living out of a bag,” evacuee Andrew Adams said.

Then there’s the frustration of how these fires got out of control. Both fires started by lightning strikes and were able to burn for days before the winds picked up, changing everything.

“I understand that they gotta let nature take its course. Wish they would’ve hopped in a helicopter and dumped water on it but I know that’s not always feasible,” Adams said.

This is where firefighting gets political. The fires started on federal lands.

“Obviously, decisions were made about how many resources to put into it, and I think in the days ahead we will all want to know those same answers to those questions, and we’ll be asking them,” said Utah Congressional District 3 Representative John Curtis.

The fires are burning on the borders of Utah’s 3rd and 4th Congressional Districts. Utah Congressional District 4 Representative Mia Love has had experience working with the federal government when it comes to firefighting from when she was Mayor of Saratoga Springs during the Dump Fire in 2012. She says that local authorities need to be listened to and included in firefighting efforts.

“There’s something to be said about listening to the people that are there but we’re going to address that. I believe we’re going to address that as far as legislation,” Rep. Love said.

Both Rep. Love and Rep. Curtis say it’s not time to have that political debate and instead all resources and support need to go to helping firefighters gain the upper hand.