Large brush fire sparks in Millcreek

Fire crews responded to a large brush fire in Millcreek on I-80 near the mouth of Parleys Canyon on Monday evening.

Utah Fire Info said the Millcreek Fire is estimated to be 15 acres. Unified Fire said no structures are currently threatened.

The state’s fire resource stated the fire was moving east, and crews were having a hard time fighting it because it was in a steep gully.

Crews were also having issues with water supply, said Nate Cochran with Unified Fire.

“Naturally, in the grass fires there’s no hydrants or anything like that. So we did have to call in some additional water tenders just to have water support,” he said.

Millcreek City officials said in a Facebook post that the fire was burning in Parley Historic Nature Park. The post stated there was a small chance the fire could jump the freeway, but it wasn’t likely.

Brendan O’Fallon, who lives nearby and often walks his dogs in the area, said it seemed “ready to burn.”

“There’s so much dry, dead wood all around,” he said. “And so I think it was only a matter of time until it really happened.”

O’Fallon said this brush fire is not the first one he and his wife have seen in the past few weeks.

“We had a really close call just a week or two ago,” he said. “There was a kind of a brush fire started over here near the substation.”

He said the fire got very close to his backyard, even damaging his fence.

“My wife and I were literally up here on the deck with a garden hose trying to fight it off until the firefighters and policemen showed up and kicked us out,” he said.

Unified Fire said one firefighter injured his knee while battling the flames, but the injury was not related to the fire.

According to Utah Fire Info, ground and air resources were responding to the scene. The public is asked to avoid the area.

It is the second significant fire in the area in just under a month.

This story may be updated.