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With the Hicks Creek Fire in Iron County nearly contained, crews have shifted their focus to safeguarding against erosion that could damage a nearby stream.
The 1,450-acre blaze — sparked Oct. 16 after a controlled burn on private property apparently rekindled and spread — was 70 percent contained Sunday evening, said Jason Curry, spokesman for the Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands. It grew 40 acres since Saturday.
Burning about 4 miles southeast of Cedar City, the fire was quelled by rainstorms starting Sunday afternoon.
"Every bit of rain we get helps," Curry said.
But too much rain, he cautioned, could cause erosion that would run off into Hicks Creek. When a fire tears through an area, it leaves landscapes with little vegetation rooting the soil to the ground. Heavy storms can wash off the top dirt layer into waterways, Curry said, with the resulting ash flow suffocating fish and indefinitely polluting a stream.
To prevent that from happening at Hicks Creek, crews have created "check dams" made of boulders to slow the flows of debris in the case of a flood. Firefighters will also reseed the area to promote new plant growth.
Though full containment is anticipated later this week, the biggest challenge, Curry said, has been the weather. High winds blew embers outside the fire line Friday, endangering crews and increasing the fire perimeter. Incident managers will continue to watch the forecast, though winds died down Sunday.
"We're out of the woods," Curry said. "Everything from this point forward looks pretty good."
Nine crews, comprising about 250 people, continued to battle the blaze, and two seasonal cabins on the east side remained off limits. No structures have been lost to the fire, but a camp trailer was burned. Evacuation orders for the "handful of cabins and homes" on the west side have been lifted.
ctanner@sltrib.com Twitter: @CourtneyLTanner