Evacuations ordered in areas along the Duchesne River due to Yellow Lake wildfire

HEBER – The Utah Fire Department has issued a mandatory evacuation order for areas in the North and West Branches of the Duchesne River due to “immediate fire danger.”

The evacuation order comes as the Yellow Lake wildfire poses “an imminent threat to life and property” in the areas, according to the Utah Fire Department. Campers and recreationists in the Grandaddy Lake region of the Ashley National Forest have been granted “readiness status,” meaning they should prepare and prepare for evacuation ahead of the fire. A forest closure is in effect for portions of the Uinta-Wasatch Cache and Ashley National Forest affected by the fire.

Friday's efforts were a “particularly challenging day” as red flag conditions, high winds, record-breaking temperatures, low humidity and unusually dry weather prepared areas for fires to spread, Utah fire officials said. The wind conditions ignited several localized fires north of State Route 35 and the pipeline, producing more visible smoke. The winds also caused the fire to spread toward Soapstone Pass and east toward Rhodes Canyon.

The fire is currently burning south and along State Route 150 and east of Mill Hollow Reservoir in the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest. The estimated area was 7,798 as of Saturday afternoon, but will likely be updated through infrared mapping, according to Utah Fire officials.

Strong winds and changing directions will continue Saturday, making for another difficult day for firefighters working to extinguish the fire and control the spread of the fire into the West Fork of the Duchesne drainage area, north into the Soapstone Basin, west into Towards Mill Hollow and east will minimize towards the North Fork of the Duchesne. As another red flag warning goes into effect Saturday, forest managers will take a “conservative approach to ensure the safety of the public and firefighters given the unpredictable weather and unseasonably dangerous conditions,” fire officials said of Utah.

The fire was determined to be human-caused and the investigation is ongoing.