The Mill Flat Fire

The Mill Flat Fire

There was a lightning strike on Pine Valley Mountain on July 25th, just north of Mill Flat. The strike started a fire which burned in rocky hillside area. Forest Service personnel were quick to observe the fire, but determined to let it burn as it seemed to pose no threat and might actually do some good by removing old growth and making way for new.

The smoke plume was visible from New Harmony and when I first spotted it I thought the fire was probably either in Main Canyon or Dam Canyon. It burned for nearly a month without spreading to more than a few acres. On Wednesday, August 26, the Forest Service had a public meeting in new harmony and informed residents that they were allowing the fire to burn based on wilderness area guidelines, and that it was being closely monitored. We were informed that if the fire reached certain predetermined lines, they would begin suppression efforts.

The very next day the fire began to spread north into the Straight Canyon area and a helicopter was called in to drop some water. The fire increased in size the following day but still appeared to be no threat. On Saturday, August 29, the fire increased in size and smoke filled the Harmony Valley. Around mid afternoon, the smoke began to lift as conditions created a 'column', and you could see that the fire had spread north of Straight Canyon and was turning back south toward Dam canyon. I went up on Little Mountain to get a better view, and was soon joined by Forest Service personnel who were now becoming quite concerned.I still wasn't too concerned for our own safety, as the fire was a long way from town. As we watched, I commented that I would start to be concerned when it came over Lawson Hill. In less than an hour it was coming over the hill, and as the evening breeze started to blow off the mountain the fire began racing north into the west side of town, threatening several homes and structures.
It was quite a helpless feeling as we watched the fire come closer and closer. We rigged up all our hoses and put sprinklers around the house and on the roof. We loaded a few emergency things and photo albums into the car just in case, still not thinking it would really get to us.

Fire crews were arriving from all over to help. A fire truck and crew from Santa Clara came and prepared to defend our home. They stated that the home itself was very defensible, but that my shop would probably not be due to all the vegetation so close by. I responded that they should forget about the shop and use all their efforts to save the house if it came to that. I moved all the vehicles down into the hay field and went back to my post on Little Mountain.

The fire burned through Gordon Pace's stockyard and haystack on its way north, which is about a quarter mile from our home. It seemed a lot closer when all you could see was a wall of smoke and fire.

As darkness came we watched the fire rage across the west side of town and the inferno consume everything in its path. We sorrowed for the property owners as we watched in morbid fascination as the flames erupted in gold, orange, red and yellow, and an occasional explosion would send sparks and flame shooting high into the air. There was a surreal beauty about what was happening, in spite of the destruction, particularly as a tree would ignite and send flames high into the night sky. We watched the fire until around midnight and by then it had calmed down with just a few hot spots occasionally flaring up.

Sunday morning the fire was relatively calm, but crews were working as soon as planes could fly, knowing that the heat of the day would bring it back to life. The main part of the fire was now burning high on the Long Ridge, burning to the south away from us. Church was called off so we watch from Little Mountain most of the day as the bombers dropped retardant and the helicopters dropped water. It was quite fascinating to watch them fill up at our neighbor's pond and fly right over our heads back to the fire.

The fire truck and crew had remained stationed at our house, though they were now from Hurricane. They seemed quite bored with their duty, wanting to be where the action was. Elma Lynne offered to let them pull weeds but they declined. I met a photographer from the Deseret News named Scott Winterton. He had made it into town before the road was closed and didn't want to leave because he wouldn't be able to get back in. We fed him a couple of meals and let him sleep in a guest room which was preferable to sleeping in his car.

The fire stayed fairly high on the mountain all day Sunday yet as the day warmed up it moved across the steep slopes south of us. At dark it died down again and didn't seem to be going anywhere, and about 9:30 pm we headed for Dad's house. We noticed that our fire truck and crew were gone, which caused a little concern but not too much as the fire seemed to be down for the night. I went out by the cemetery and watched until around midnight and the fire seemed quite benign so we went to bed at Dad's house to be company for Donna while Dad is in rehab in Saint George.
Around 2:00 am we were awakened by sirens and I went out to the corner and looked toward our home to see the fire had moved down the mountain and was literally at the back of Little Mountain which was glowing like a football stadium under full lights.

I quickly dressed and hurried to our home and upon arrival there realized the fire was way too close for comfort. I called Elma Lynne and told her that if she wanted anything else out of the house she better come and get it. There was a search and rescue man knocking on our door to tell us to get out, so I relayed the message to Scott who was sleeping peacefully. Then I headed for Little Mountain to get a good view of what was happening. On the way there I ran into a Forrest Service truck and the driver said he was lost. I told him how to get back to town, and asked him to get me a fire truck if he possibly could. Within twenty minutes we had two fire trucks and about thirty Hot shots on site.

As we watched from Little Mountain the wind calmed down and the fire stopped its advance around 4:00am. At this point they decided to do a back-burn from the fire line along the forest boundary, and soon the night sky was again vivid with fire, but this time it was burning away from us. As daylight came the fire near us was pretty well controlled and we had a pretty good fire break just in case it decided to turn back.

Hot Shot crews maintained the fire break most of the day, and by evening we felt that the threat was past for us. They continued to work for another few days, with crews and planes concentrating on areas high on the mountain.

Cooler weather helped and by the following Sunday the fire was declared 100% contained and the crews began to move out. As we looked at the smoldering heap the used to be Pine Valley Mountain, our hearts are sick for the loss.

In the final assessment the fire burned an estimated 12,607 acres and cost $6.2 million to put out. At the high point there were 765 personnel including seven Hotshot crews, 11 type two crews, 10 helicopters, 2 fixed wing aircraft, 35 engines, 2 dozers, and 8 water tenders. The support staff and logistics and organization of such an operation are staggering, and it was amazing to see how quickly they assembled this team.

I think most everyone in the valley is grateful for the efforts made. It could have been much worse. Several structures and three homes were lost, one being a million dollar second home, one being an abandoned double wide and a third being an apartment type structure over a barn. Several other homes and structures were damaged, but luckily saved. Mistakes were made that could have possibly averted this tragedy, and yet I think everyone knew Pine Valley Mountain was over due for a fire. I think that most felt that since the Blue Springs Fire a few years ago had come so close, we were immune for a while, but not so.

Now it is time for healing. It will take years for the mountain to recover, perhaps even decades, but it will recover. Many of us will not be alive to see it fully happen, but we will be able to watch as life returns, the ash fades and green takes over again.