A wildfire just 55 miles south of St. George spread from 640 acres on Monday to 820 on Tuesday.
A lightning storm started the High Meadow fire on the Bureau of Land Management Arizona Strip near Mt. Trumbull and Potato Valley on July 14.
“Crews have been managing it since that time,” said Rachel Carnahan, Arizona Strip District public affairs officer for the BLM. “And heavy winds on Saturday did cause the fire to become quite active again.”
Carnahan said the fire is difficult to maintain in the area it is in.
“In that area, we have some really rough, rugged terrain, very steep, very difficult to get to, very remote,” Carnahan said. “And so we’re limited in our ability logistically to really kind of get our arms around this fire.”
Carnahan said the fire is not being managed to completely disappear but to achieve objectives in both protection and natural resources.
“That means we are doing everything that we can to protect the private property in that area and also allow that fire to do what it does best, which is to reduce the downed fuel accumulation that’s within that ponderosa pine stand,” Carnahan said.
Carnahan said too much downed fuel accumulation, which includes pine needles and branches on the forest floor, can lead to bigger fires in the future.
Carnahan said she does not anticipate any evacuations at this time. She said the closest city is 55 miles away in St. George. However, she said it can affect ranchers living in the Utah city, who have property near the fire.
Carnahan said she wants the public to be aware of the heat and dryness of the area in their activities.