The town of Eureka, Utah, remained under evacuation on Sunday as a nearby fire grew to nearly 22,000 acres by midday.
The human-caused fire is burning on the border of Tooele, Utah and Juab counties and remains 0% contained at 21,935 acres, Utah fire managers said. The fire had been mapped at 13,323 acres Sunday morning just several hours earlier. No homes have been lost.
“We can all let out a cautious sigh of relief for now,” Santaquin Fire and EMS said on Facebook early Sunday.
“A successful backburn operation helped protect the town overnight, and no primary structures were lost,” Utah Fire Info, managed by state fire officials, posted on X.
“Crews will continue assessing conditions and conducting burn operations (Sunday) to strengthen and secure fire lines,” the agency added.
A federal firefighting crew that handles complex fires will take command of the fire at 6 p.m. Sunday, it added.
The power was also out in Eureka, and Utah Fire Info said it would be restored after safety issues are assessed.
Officials have not disclosed the fire’s specific cause other than to say it was caused by humans. It’s unclear how many homes are evacuated, but the latest census data from 2020 estimated between 662 and 828 people live there.
FEMA said it had authorized the use of federal funds for the fire late Saturday, which will pay 75% toward the state’s firefighting costs, but does not provide assistance to individual home or business owners or for infrastructure damage.
This story will be updated.