Entering its third week, the lightning-caused Tank Hollow Fire had blackened nearly 4,200 acres of timber, grass and brush in Spanish Fork Canyon by Tuesday.
Fire Information Officer Jason Curry said the blaze, which began on Aug. 11 about 20 miles east of Spanish Fork and north of U.S. 6, was holding at 20 percent containment. Crews don’t expect to have the blaze, burning in remote, rugged and steep terrain, fully hemmed in until Oct. 15.
Complicating the efforts of some 260 firefighters were shifting winds that come along with isolated, high-elevation thunderstorms.
“Gusty upslope winds [are occurring] during the day [are] becoming downslope in the evening,” Curry reported, adding that little rain comes from the storms — but dry lightning does, adding an unpredictable element for crews.
Still, firefighters, aided by heavy equipment on the ground and helicopters and planes laden with water and fire retardant above, were noting successes. Fire lines along the northwest edge of the blaze, running from the Unicorn Ridge Campground to west of Sheep Creek Roads, were “holding well,” Curry added.
On the northern edge of the fire, a bulldozed line below Corral Canyon extending to Tie Fork Road was halting the spread of flames north, in the area of electrical lines.
Sheep Creek and Indian Creek Ridge roads remained open on Tuesday, but Curry noted that closures remained in effect for many other roads in the area. Those planned excursions in the region are advised to first check the Utah Wildfire site at utahfireinfo.gov.
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