A terrifying situation has gotten worse now that the Dollar Ridge Fire has jumped Highway 40 after continuing growth for the third day in a row. According to a fact sheet on the fire distributed on July 4th, the fire was human caused and started on July 1st. It has reached over 54 square miles or 35,000 acres and was 1 percent contained as of
Wednesday morning
. Warm temperatures, low humidity, and gusty winds provided the dangerous combination that keeps increasing the fire’s intensity. The most activity has been along the north and northeastern edges of the fire. “Additional structures have been lost,” shares the fact sheet, “though an accurate count still has not been established as the area is deemed too dangerous to do a proper assessment.” Duchesne County Sheriff David Boren has issued additional mandatory evacuations for the threatened neighborhoods from Fruitland to Starvation Reservoir. Crews continue to strive to expand and improve on firelines and a large aerial fire effort has been taking place with water scooper planes loading at Strawberry Reservoir as well as helicopters getting bucket refills at Starvation Reservoir. Highway 40 was closed Wednesday after the fire crossed near Currant Creek Junction. The closure is from just north of Strawberry Reservoir to the Freedom Bridge near Duchesne after the fire jumped the highway. Areas of Highway 40 have limited visibility and travelers are urged to slow down and remain alert wherever they are traveling. While Highway 40 is closed, travelers can consider US-191 through Indian Canyon or SR-87 to SR-35 over Wolf Creek. A Dollar Ridge community meeting is being held today,
Thursday, July 5th, at 7:00pm
at the Duchesne High School where representatives from the affected areas will be in attendance to answer questions.
