This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2014, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A fast-moving brush fire ripped through dry brush at the north end of Utah Lake Monday, and could be a preview of a particularly active wildfire season.
Crews learned at 1:09 p.m. that a fire was burning near 500 West and 2000 South in Lehi, according to Lehi Battalion Chief Rick Howard. The fire grew to about six acres by mid afternoon, sending up a plume of gray smoke as it scorched dry reeds, or phragmites, along the lake shore.
Firefighters had the blaze mostly contained before 4 p.m., though it continued to smolder.
Fire engines were deployed in the Loch Lomond subdivision in Saratoga Springs as a precautionary measure but` Howard said the flames never seriously threatened any structures. The fire also did not cause any injuries.
Investigators Monday did not know what caused the fire.
But while the blaze was small and relatively quickly contained, Howard said it absolutely could foreshadow an especially active wild fire season in Utah. Howard pointed out that two years with below average rainfall have left the state unusually dry. Howard also pointed out that the mountains continue to have low snow pack, further raising the possibility of more severe wildfires later in the year.
A fire on Sunday at the south end of Utah Lake burned about 75 acres of wetland foliage.