The Summit County Sheriff’s Office declined to issue a correction for an emergency alert that mistakenly pinged cellphones outside the Rocky Canyon Fire evacuation area because officials didn’t want to confuse residents who needed to leave their homes.

On Sunday afternoon, the law enforcement agency sent an alert notifying Henefer residents of an evacuation order spurred by the Rocky Canyon Fire. However, residents in other parts of Summit County and Salt Lake County also received the message, which led to confusion about the fire’s scope and affected neighborhoods.

The Sheriff’s Office in a press release said the department “did not have a complete understanding of what had occurred” at the time and initially believed the notification had reached its intended audience.

“The notification dashboard available to us was indicating that only 107 phones had received the alert, while information coming back from the community indicated that the alert had reached phones well beyond the intended geographic area,” the press release said. “This discrepancy made it difficult to determine the actual scope of the issue and who may have received the alert.”

The press release explained the Sheriff’s Office decided not to send a second alert correcting the mistake to avoid creating “even greater confusion.”

“Our concern was that people who needed to evacuate could receive conflicting information and mistakenly believe the evacuation order no longer applied to them,” the press release said. “While we recognize that the initial (alert) caused significant confusion for many residents, our decisions were guided by one priority: protecting human life and preventing further confusion for those who needed to evacuate.”

The agency has reviewed its alert system and said “everything appears to be functioning properly” as of Monday afternoon, but the program’s software technicians have been notified of the incident “to ensure the system is functioning properly on their end.”

The press release called the mistake an “isolated occurrence” and indicated the Sheriff’s Office will continue using the alert system as the Rocky Canyon Fire unfolds. However, the department plans to undertake “a more comprehensive investigation” into the accidental notification “when circumstances allow.”

The Sheriff’s Office acknowledged the fear and confusion the alert caused for many residents and apologized for the situation, saying the department is committed to uncovering what happened and addressing any unresolved issues.

“We understand how unsettling it was for residents to receive an emergency alert that did not apply to their location,” the press release said. “We know our community must have confidence in both the emergency alerting system and the Summit County Sheriff’s Office’s ability to effectively manage and communicate during an emergency. We take that responsibility seriously and do not want this incident to undermine that trust in any way.”

The Sheriff’s Office also shares information on wildfires and other public safety emergencies online, and the department reminded residents to check the county website and social media pages for updates. 

Details on the Rocky Canyon Fire, including community meetings and evacuation orders, are available by visiting tinyurl.com/4yptafas.

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Mere hours after Gov. Spencer Cox banned fireworks across the state until after the Fourth of July, one city in the Wasatch Back considered designating specific areas for the public to safely discharge fireworks, which would have been allowed under the emergency declaration.

The Heber City Council held an emergency meeting Thursday to discuss the possibility of allowing the use of fireworks at six public parks from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on July 4.

Wasatch Fire District Chief Eric Hales said at the meeting he would have preferred three or four locations. That’s because Independence Day is typically busy for the Wasatch Fire District, which would not have the bandwidth to send firefighters to monitor the six parks for that entire 12-hour period. 

Instead, the Fire District would have provided 5-gallon water buckets at each park for residents to dispose of fireworks responsibly and put out any small fires if needed. 

Heber City resident Barb Clark supported a citywide fireworks ban.

“I live in the north end, and we have a lot of people that just love their aerials. Cops have been called several times over the years that I’ve lived there. My house gets bombarded with shrapnel the next day, and all this detritus all over the place,” she said. 

Clark said she appreciated the logic of giving people who might set off fireworks anyway a safe place to do so, but that she was skeptical that everyone would follow the rules or even be aware of them in the first place.

The final decision ultimately came down to Mayor Heidi Franco, per Cox’s executive order. 

Franco expressed concern that Heber City would see an influx of visitors wanting to set off fireworks if they were allowed in some locations because fireworks were banned everywhere else in the Wasatch Back. She announced a citywide ban the following morning.

“This beautiful valley and mountains protect us, and now we need to protect them. Plus, your safety is most important,” she said. 

She referred to the city’s encouragement of voluntary water conservation to combat the current drought, saying, “The recent rain is not enough. … Let’s not make our city’s situation worse.”

Despite the ban, several public officials, including city councilors, Hales and Heber City Police Chief Parker Sever predicted fireworks use would likely happen over the holiday anyway.

Sever hails from Hanford, California, where he said fireworks are never allowed. Despite that, he said it was “difficult to enforce” and would likely be even more difficult in Heber City, where public fireworks use is typically allowed over the holiday.

“People aren’t putting on a big show, so by the time we triangulate where these things are going on from the sky, usually, their show’s done. And then, neighbors don’t want to tell on their neighbors,” he said.

Cox’s ban lasts July 2-6. Discharging fireworks in Utah is already illegal all other times, except July 22-25 for Pioneer Day, on Dec. 31 and for Chinese New Year. Cox has not announced the state’s approach to Pioneer Day fireworks. 

Oakley Mayor Steve Wilmoth said Friday the city plans on keeping the fireworks display at the Oakley Rodeo. 

More than 75% of Utah’s wildfires have been human-caused since the beginning of the fire season, according to the governor. 

Wasatch Fire Marshal Clint Neerings said most fires started by fireworks come down to “negligence and/or ignorance,” including people who set them off near vegetation, dispose of them in dumpsters without soaking them in water or discharge an aerial firework that inadvertently launches horizontally instead of vertically.

State forester Jamie Barnes described the quick spread of wildfires due to dry vegetation and the current drought as “unlike anything we’ve seen in recent memory.”

Hales agreed with that assessment.

“Coming out of the winter we came out of, and then the fire behavior and all the fires that we’re having in the state, it’s just getting drier and hotter,” he said. “We’ve been very fortunate. We’ve only had a handful of starts within Wasatch County, and they’ve been very small.”

He said wildfire risk is poised to get worse and worse going into July, and that what little moisture the county may receive is “not enough to make a difference.”

Violating Cox’s fireworks ban is punishable by an infraction and a fine of up to $1,000.

More severe punishments apply to areas under Stage 2 Fire Restrictions. Both Wasatch and Summit counties entered into Stage 2 Fire Restrictions on Friday. These restrictions apply to unincorporated state and private lands in both counties. Whether or not to implement Stage 2 Fire Restrictions in individual cities comes down to the decision of the local government. In 2025, Stage 2 Fire Restrictions weren’t implemented statewide until July 31.

The following actions are banned, will be enforced by county law enforcement and are punishable by up to six months in jail and a fine up to $1,000:

• Building, maintaining, attending or using a campfire or stove fire.
• Smoking, except with an enclosed vehicle, trailer, building, developed recreation site or while stopped in an area that is paved or free from dry vegetation.
• Discharging or using any fireworks, tracer ammunition or other pyrotechnic devices, including exploding targets.
• Cutting, welding or grinding metal in areas of dry vegetation.
• Operating a motorcycle, chainsaw, ATV or other small internal combustion engine without an approved and working spark arrestor.

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The North Summit Fire District responded to multiple incidents over the weekend, including an explosion in Coalville that left one person with serious injuries.

Around 7:45 p.m. on Sunday, fire crews were called to a structure fire and explosion on East 150 South in Coalville, according to a press release posted on social media.

First responders arrived on scene to find that a detached shed had blown up and one person had sustained “critical burn injuries.” The Summit County Sheriff’s Office in a shift report specified the man had “severe burns to the arms, legs and face.”

A medical helicopter transported the individual to a burn center in the Salt Lake Valley.

Crews secured the scene and extinguished the fire, but the cause of the explosion is still under investigation.

The department had responded to two other incidents earlier on Sunday afternoon, beginning with an agricultural burn around 4 p.m. The burn, located near River Bend Road in Wanship, had spread beyond its intended area, prompting firefighters to contain it.

While working on the fire in Wanship, crews were alerted to another brush fire around 5:30 p.m. on East Henefer Road. They determined it was a controlled agricultural burn reported by a passerby. The property owner had the burn under control, and fire crews did not take any further action.

“These incidents highlight how quickly conditions can change, especially with agricultural burns,” said battalion chief Tyler Rowser. “We appreciate our partner agencies, the Park City Fire District, South Summit Fire District and Morgan County Fire Department for their support and want to remind residents to take extra precautions and ensure fires are properly managed and monitored at all times.”

The press release said the North Summit Fire District plans to ask the Summit County Council this week to enact fire restrictions in unincorporated parts of the county on May 1. Similar requests will also be made to the Henefer Town Council and Coalville City Council.

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The Park City Fire District on Tuesday responded to a construction trailer engulfed in flames next to Dozier Field.

The fire was first reported around 5:40 p.m., according to a joint press release from the fire department and Park City School District. Firefighters quickly jumped into action, containing and fully extinguishing the blaze about 20 minutes later.

The fire only affected one “cargo trailer” next to the construction site. The school district said there was no ongoing threat to students, staff or the high school.

School operations were unaffected, and students attended classes as normal on Wednesday.

“Safety is a shared commitment,” said Superintendent Lyndsay Huntsman. “We’re proud to partner with our local first responders to ensure a secure and supportive environment for students and staff members every single day. We’re fortunate that this was an isolated incident with no injuries or property damage. We extend our gratitude to the Park City Fire District, as well as the Park City Police Department, for their prompt response and ongoing commitment to supporting our schools.”

The cause of the fire is still under investigation. The school district said it is working with the fire department to gather details on how it started.

“We ask for the community’s patience as this process continues,” the press release said.

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A fire in Oakley on Monday night spread to the roof of a building and spurred an emergency response from four local fire departments.

The South Summit Fire District was notified around 8 p.m. of a structure fire in Oakley. It was classified as a “working incident,” and the Wasatch Fire District responded to assist.

The Wasatch Fire District said in a social media post that the fire was quickly knocked down in the interior of the building, but it had already spread to the roof and attic.

“This was particularly challenging due to the high vaulted ceiling, as well as the roof being a corrugated metal,” the department said. “It had snowed recently, which made the roof a slip hazard, as it was also steep.”

The Park City Fire District and North Summit Fire District were then contacted as additional assistance to help access the roof. Ultimately, firefighters were able to get the blaze under control.

The cause is still under investigation.

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Flames fully engulfed a local business on Spring Hollow Road Thursday morning.

Frontier Woodworks, which specializes in handcrafted doors and millwork, sent a plume of smoke into the air that was visible across the Kamas Valley around 9:20 a.m.

South Summit Fire Protection District Chief Scott Thorell said crews were able to arrive on scene quickly because they were already en route to a medical call in the area.

“They reassigned themselves and went to the fire, and we dispatched our other ambulance to the medical call,” he said. “It’s a larger piece of property with tons of fuel. Upon their arrival, they found a large amount of fire that had moved into the storage area with lots of lumber, and they started to extinguish it.”

The Park City Fire District and Wasatch Fire District responded to the scene as well to assist with suppression efforts. The fire was under control around 11 a.m., about an hour and a half after it was reported.

“The main body of the business, where the flower shop and workshop and the storage area were, is all a total loss,” Thorell said.

The fire started near a dust collection system with a lot of machinery, he added, but the cause is still under investigation.

There were no injuries.

Dusty Hatch, who owns the business, was on vacation with his wife without cell service, according to his father-in-law, Nolan Phillips.

“This is the second time there’s been a fire. It was quite a few years ago,” Phillips said. “It was so successful, and he just built this other place right here that was going to be his showroom and everything.”

The family said Hatch had recently taken out a loan to purchase new equipment in addition to the recent showroom expansion.

Approximately five local families are employed and fed by the business, and community members have already set up an online fundraiser to help with rebuilding efforts.

State investigators have been called in to help determine the cause of the fire.

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A subcontractor working on Oakley’s new pump house was severely burned in an explosion Monday morning.

The South Summit Fire District responded to the scene shortly after 9 a.m. to provide medical assistance to the worker, who was “burned severely in the face and neck area,” according to a press release from Oakley City officials.

The employee was transported to the University of Utah Hospital by a medical helicopter.

The Wasatch Fire District also responded to the pump house and helped extinguish the flames.

“[The pump house] is still standing, but it looks like it is a total loss from what I can see,” said Jackson Coleman, South Summit fire marshal. “It is too early to say what the cause of the explosion was, but that will be determined in the next few days, and we will keep the area clear for the investigation.”

Jan Manning, an Oakley City planning commissioner, heard the explosion from her home about 150 yards away and called 911. She ran to the pump house and stayed with the injured worker until emergency crews arrived a few minutes later.

She described the employee as “very stunned” and “very badly burned on his head and his hands.”

“We are all taken aback by the unfortunate event that took place this morning, and our deepest condolences and best wishes go out to the construction worker, his family and his co-workers,” said Oakley Mayor Zane Woolstenhulme.

The new well and pump house has been an ongoing city project for three years. The Oakley City Council was receiving regular updates on its construction ahead of an estimated summer completion date.

But Oakley City Councilor Tom Smart said he thinks the damage has only set the city back two or three months.

“Our concerns are mostly for the subcontractor,” Smart said. “Everything else can be rebuilt, and as soon as they sort through insurance and inspections and understand exactly what happened, which I assume will happen all next week, I’m sure that they’ll get back to rebuilding that structure.”

The project so far has cost $5 million.

“I don’t know how salvageable the actual building is. It probably is a total loss, but the foundation’s in, and they’ll just have to scrape it and start over,” Smart said. “I don’t think it would take a good construction team that much time to rebuild it. … It’s going to take a few days to sort out, but we’re ready and the subcontractor’s ready to go as soon as we get that sorted out.”

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When John Blazzard was a student at Utah State University, he would often skip his Friday classes and drive home to Kamas. He wasn’t necessarily avoiding his academic responsibilities, but there was something else that took priority — the family sawmill.

“I’d have to come home and sharpen enough saws to keep them ready for the week,” Blazzard said. “I’d sharpen everything we had. Sometimes it didn’t last them through Friday, so I had to run home and sharpen more saws so that we could keep going.”

Although Blazzard Lumber wasn’t established until the 1950s, the Blazzard family has been in the lumber business since the pioneers first arrived in the Kamas Valley. The area has a strong history of lumber, according to the Summit County Historical Society. In fact, Kamas was settled by Thomas Rhodes, a sawmill operator of all things, in 1857.

Decades later, during World War II, Blazzard’s grandfather, who owned a plant in the middle of Kamas, manufactured wooden boxes for the military. When Blazzard’s parents got married, his dad became involved with what Blazzard described as “portable mills.”

“They’d move them around up in the woods,” he explained. “Then they’d drag the logs to the mill on horses, and then when it got too far away, they’d move the mill and do it again, but the Forest Service decided that they didn’t want him up there anymore, so he moved his mill down and built this one.”

Last week, the sawmill that has been part of the Kamas community for over 70 years — and where Blazzard has worked since he was 5 years old — was gutted in a late night blaze that destroyed most of the mill’s equipment.

“About a quarter after 9, I drove by real slow like I always do because it’s dark down here,” said David Blazzard, John Blazzard’s nephew, who was breaking down and collecting the scorched debris of a former structure while he spoke. “There are no lights. We do that on purpose because fire is a danger, so we look for glows or smoke or anything, and there was nothing. The call went in around 10 o’clock, and it was completely ablaze.”

The fire destroyed everything except for one saw, which was protected by a shed at the edge of the mill. A week later, rubble from the collapsed shelters that housed pieces of the sawmill had collected in haphazard corners, covered in ash and snow despite as workers and volunteers cleaned up. The framework of machinery still stood on the property like skeletons, dismantled either by the fire or by crews attempting to evaluate the damage.

“We couldn’t even see any of this stuff two days ago,” John Blazzard said, gesturing to the charred remains of his equipment. “The lumber burned underneath and then the tin roof fell down.”

John Blazzard said that the family still doesn’t know the full cost of the damage or how feasible it would be to rebuild, and officials with the South Summit Fire District were unable to determine the fire’s cause. However, the Fire District said that it likely started on the southern end of the mill and quickly spread north.

“We got a wind out of the south that just blew the fire and it was like a big old tunnel,” David Blazzard said. “Within 30 minutes it was just … well, here we are. We had fire trucks everywhere. It was a hectic thing.”

John Blazzard said that the sawmill was uninsured, which is typical for such a high-risk business.

“My dad always said you could burn your sawmill down every seven years and be money ahead after paying fire insurance,” he said. “It was just exorbitantly high.”

Replacing equipment is also pricey, however.

John Blazzard estimated that three of his saws cost between $3,500 and $4,000 each. One piece of used equipment that he considered as a replacement had a price tag over $200,000. An irreplaceable German saw that is no longer in production was likely worth more than a million dollars. And this is only scratching the surface of what it would take to get the mill up and running again.

“There’s a lot here, as you can see,” said David Blazzard. “It takes a lot to keep a sawmill going. A lot, I mean, a lot. It’s hard work, and it’s hard to find people who want to come do it anymore.”

Like his uncle, David Blazzard grew up at the sawmill and he said he is beyond thankful to the community members who have shown up to help clean up the rubble or donated to the family’s GoFundMe.

“Last night, the Singles Ward came in the dark and brought big lights and everything,” he said. “I started the loader, and they worked here for two and a half hours. Man, they were a little army, I’ll tell you what, sent by the Lord himself. They were just little machines. They helped us out so much. When the truck got full, they just started dumping it with wheelbarrows right there. They just didn’t stop.”

The Blazzards have also received help from local high school students, their former bishop and others in the Kamas community.

“People around here have been wonderful,” John Blazzard echoed. “We’ve had people coming in. One guy is 80 years old, He comes in, and he says, ‘I don’t know how to do anything and I’m not a scholar, but I know how to run a scoop shovel.’ He’s been here all week gathering stuff. Everybody’s calling, wondering what they can do to help us.”

At one time, there were seven sawmills in the Kamas Valley. Now Blazzard Lumber is the only one left, and while the future of the business remains uncertain, David Blazzard said that there’s nothing to do but move forward.

“We know how to work hard, and we know how to put it forth, but people want to help, so you have to allow that blessing, to allow for them to help in their way however they can,” he said. “People are good. They’re generous, and we’re thankful for that.”

Anyone interested in donating to the GoFundMe can visit https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-the-blazzard-family-after-sawmill-fire.

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A fire gutted Blazzard Lumber in Kamas late Wednesday night and caused substantial damage to an “irreplaceable” saw from Germany worth about $1 million, according to the owner, John Blazzard.

“From the moment we were paged, and I live about a mile away, I saw an orange glow,” said South Summit Fire District Chief Scott Thorell. “There was already a well-involved fire in the mill.”

Firefighters were notified of the blaze around 10:08 p.m. and arrived at the Kamas lumber mill by 10:17 p.m.

“We were able to gain control pretty quickly,” Thorell said. “We had three South Summit Fire District engines, a tender and a wildland, a truck, and then we had a Wasatch truck and a Park City engine.”

Strong south winds caused the fire to spread rapidly and “create a large volume of fire,” Thorell said, but firefighters were able to contain the flames to the mill.

Thirty-nine South Summit Fire District personnel responded to the incident with an additional seven responders from other jurisdictions. Firefighters stayed overnight on fire watch, but they had extinguished the flames by 2 a.m. Thursday.

“The investigation phase is complete and the official cause was undetermined,” Thorell said Friday morning. “The point of origin is known. At this point, there have been no suspicious findings.”

Thorell said that he did not have an official estimate regarding property damage costs, but many expensive pieces of equipment were damaged or destroyed, including an “irreplaceable” saw from Germany that the owner of the mill estimated to cost at least a million dollars.

“It was a pretty substantial, if not devastating, loss for the Blazzard family,” Thorell said. “They’ve been a member of the community for 80 years. It’s pretty devastating. They’re not insured, so they’re struggling to find a path forward.”

Thorell said there were no injuries to civilians or firefighters. Blazzard didn’t wish to comment, saying the fire and damage were too fresh. The business is one of the oldest in the Kamas Valley.

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Yellow Lake Fire public information officer Jeff Armstrong said there have been some recent changes in the fire’s behavior, though the major challenges remain: unseasonably warm, dry and windy conditions in a national forest filled with beetle-killed timber.

As the 24,000-acre wildfire burns on a few miles away, Mirror Lake Highway remains open. The area to the roadway’s north stretching to Weber Canyon is what is closed. 

Armstrong explained the remote area is not a friend of cell reception and a potential rescue in the region would prove resource-consuming.

Suppression efforts continue, though they are complicated with warmer temperatures uncharacteristic for this late in the season. Winds have also dried out fuel sources, and timber in the area affected by beetle rot provide fuel for the flames. The topography of the area is also a factor, as it isn’t easily navigable and firefighters can’t easily access each point of the fire.

Primary growth areas have been along the the fire’s north finger and northeast toward Mirror Lake Highway.

Thursday evening, firefighting officials held a town hall meeting in Tabiona High School Thursday at 6 p.m. on the blaze’s progression as well as instructions on how to prepare for a possible evacuation and what precautions and preparations residents can take.

If people are looking to escape the smoke or are concerned for their livestock as the area remains at “set” for possible evacuation, the Duchesne County Event Center has 44 RV hookup spots and is ready to accept animals. People can call 435-738-0196 for more information.

Susan Eickoff, a deputy director for natural resources in the Intermountain Region of the U.S. Forest Service, said that while all fires are difficult, this one is particularly tricky given the region’s unseasonally warm weather.

On Wednesday morning, California’s Interagency Incident Management Team 2 took over, which she said is good news.

“The first team did a great job, although they were smaller,” she said. “This team comes in bringing a lot of resources, lots of experience and skill.”

Pat Russell, a fire operations specialist, talked about the unfavorability of a forest fire at this time of year. With other wildfires throughout the country and hurricanes hitting the east coast, he said resources can get a bit stretched but are currently in good condition.

Paul Corrigan, the assigned air resource adviser, also warned people of the less immediate but still very real dangers of the amount of smoke blowing into the community. He said that each day, Hanna gets about four hours of good air and Tabiona gets around six.

“The rest of the day is mostly unhealthy,” he said. “Cold air flows down the river corridor almost every night, and when there’s a bunch of smoke up there, that’s what it brings with it, unfortunately.”

The resulting air quality, he emphasized, is far worse than what communities would see in wintertime inversions, and that can come with potential health impacts, especially for older folks, very young children and people with pre-existing heart or lung conditions.

“Avoid it if at all possible,” he said. 

Speaking more toward the immediate danger of a fire, Duchesne County Fire Marshal Joshua Phillips gave an overview of the ready, set, go evacuation program adopted by Utah.  

He said people can always prepare by keeping their properties and lawns and taking other appropriate education opportunities.

“The second part is when this happens,” he said. 

He mentioned how everyone in Hanna is at the “set” part of the program. When it’s time to go, it’s time to go.

Those with cabins at Duchesne’s north fork have hit that point, and Jerry Martinez with California’s Team 2 laid out a plan for people wanting to get back to their property.

He is working to collect information from individuals in those situations — names, when they want to return, what they’re doing, number of vehicles — to funnel the to the appropriate entity.

If it comes time for the area’s locals to evacuate, they were asked to leave water sources available.

The most recent acreage and containment update from Friday morning was that the blaze is at 23,987 acres and is 18% contained. 

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