Specifically, wildfires started by motor vehicles and other equipment are on the rise in 2024.

Karl Hunt — FFSL’s public information officer — told the Standard-Examiner that there were a number of equipment and vehicle-triggered fires during the extended holiday weekend (July 3-7).

“Fire starts from equipment were our highest cause over this weekend,” Hunt said. “Equipment is kind of a broad category but motor vehicles fall underneath that, and we had six fire starts related to vehicles. So, about half of those equipment starts were caused by motor vehicles.”

A release last week from FFSL noted that the Beehive State had, as of July 2, experienced 56 wildfires caused by motor vehicles dating back to Memorial Day weekend and the start of the summer travel season. And while the current hot, dry weather conditions factor heavily in those numbers, the cool, wet springs of recent years have set the table for an uptick in activity.

“We’ve had really good water years, which is great — the state needed it,” Hunt said. “But with those really good water years comes an increased growth in our fine fuels. That’s the really fine grasses and shrubbery that we see at lower elevations and near roadsides. That has really grown. And because of our lower fire activity those last couple years, they haven’t burned. So, this year, we have that heavier fuel load.”

In other words, the landscape is brimming with material for burning and fire spread.

“And they’re ripe for ignition due to the excessive heat and dry conditions that we’ve been experiencing over the last month here in the state.”

Keeping tow chains off the pavement and secured is a key preventative step that can be taken to help reduce the chance of sparking a fire. Hunt says that vehicle maintenance also can be a difference-maker.

“Whatever trailer, if it’s a boat trailer, a camp trailer, make sure it’s properly maintained; that its tires are inflated properly and they’re not worn out. Same thing with your vehicle; make sure regular maintenance is being done on it,” he said.

“All of those factors can contribute to having something happen while you’re traveling down the road. We want to limit that from happening because when you do experience an emergency on the road, we tend to pull over to the side of the road where a lot of these finer fuels currently exist.”

From the beginning of the year through July 2, Utah also saw 72 wildfires due to escaped agricultural or debris burns, per FFSL, 31 of which occurred during closed fire season (which runs from June 1 through Oct. 31). Individuals lawfully conducting burns during closed fire season must notify an applicable public safety answering point for the jurisdiction where the burn will be taking place.

Per state law, individuals responsible for setting a forest, brush, range, field, cultivated land or a debris pile on fire without securing (and fully complying with) a written permit is guilty of a Class C misdemeanor.

It’s also unlawful to burning when a Red Flag Warning — indicating hot temperatures, low humidity and stronger winds — is in effect.

To report a fire, call 911 immediately. For more information, visit https://utahfiresense.org/.