LEHI — Firefighters worked quickly Tuesday to control a blaze that flickered dangerously close to a still-under-construction junior high school.
Traffic on Main Street in Lehi slowed to a crawl and eventually halted for about 45 minutes as crews tried to douse the flames in the area of Main Street and 9550 West.
The fire was ignited on purpose shortly before 3 p.m. by a Lehi farmer to rid a field of withered vegetation. It burned out of control when strong winds whipped through the area.
Sparks were blown into a row of trees that were quickly engulfed in flames.
Nearby homes were not evacuated, officials said, but a shed and a motor home were quickly moved from the fire's path.
The fire, which burned only 75 feet of a field and a ditch bank but scared the farmer when the trees caught on fire, came within 50 feet of a home and 80 feet from the new school.
Dale Ekins, Lehi's fire chief, said a stack of water pipes was the only thing on the construction site damaged by the out-of-control fire.
The blaze, in the field adjacent to the school, was declared under control by 5 p.m.
Alpine District officials were unaware the fire was inching closer to the school until after the fire was under control. "I don't think the junior high was ever in jeopardy," Ekins said.
With motorists caught in the stopped traffic on Main Street, the fire served as a reminder to the Utah Department of Transportation of some of the traffic challenges faced in northern Utah County.
Main Street, also known as SR73, is currently the only east-west corridor to Saratoga Springs and Eagle Mountain — two of Utah's fastest-growing cities.
Geoff Dupaix, a UDOT official, said the transportation agency sees the need for a larger east-west road leading to the cities.
UDOT has started an environmental impact study on developing another east-west route. The study will look at transportation demands in west Salt Lake County and Utah County.
UDOT is looking into the impact of constructing a north-south highway that would lead from I-80 in Salt Lake County to Pleasant Grove, and an east-west route from Bangerter Highway to 11800 West in Saratoga Springs to I-15 for the Utah County portion. The Mountain View Corridor study is projected to be finished in 2006.
There have been some improvements to SR73 to accommodate the growth. Additional lanes have been built just west of Redwood Road.
"When there is an incident like this, that situation will be difficult for motorists as it is," Duplex said. "At the same time, we are working to . . . alleviate the current problems."
E-mail: jdoria@ke@desnews.com