Crews working to mitigate the Monroe Canyon Fire face “historic lows” in relative humidities.
(U.S. Forest Service) Firefighter with a drip torch sets a line of fire along Highway 24 during overnight operations on the Monroe Canyon Fire, Thursday, July 31, 2025.
Even during a more favorable day Friday, the Monroe Canyon Fire continued to grow as firefighters faced considerable gusts of wind and low fuel moisture, according to a Saturday update from Great Basin Complex Incident Management Team 5, which is managing the situation.
Progress made
According to the update, the fire is now 57,118 acres and is 4% contained. Previous reports from the team said it was 11% contained on Thursday and 7% contained on Friday morning. According to the update, there are 23 aircraft and 1,503 people working to curtail the flames.
In a Facebook post Saturday, Sevier County emergency manager William Taufer said yesterday’s fire growth was 1,400 acres compared to over 10,000 acres the day before. Some evacuations were also lifted and power restored, he added.
In Beaver Valley, the incident management team’s report said power companies are still working to replace damaged power poles and restore power to residents.
“Yesterday, we had a great day,” operations section chief Isaac Powning said in an operational update video posted Saturday morning.
In the north, he said the fire did grow somewhat, though there were “resources in great spots” that helped crews take control of the spread.
To the south, he said firefighters continue to “look for opportunities” to contain the fire and stop it from progressing toward U.S. 89.
Highway 24 also remains open as firefighters “kept the fire on the west side of the highway, despite high winds,” Saturday’s update said. Firefighters are continuing to expand a fireline and mitigate hot spots in the area, the update states.
“This burned area will assist firefighters by acting as a holding feature, should the fire attempt to make any more wind-driven runs toward the east,” the update said. “Crews will be working along roadways in the coming days. We ask that the public drive safely when passing firefighters.”
Continuing Challenges
Alyssa Archuleta, a public information officer for the incident management team, said low humidity levels remain a challenge in controlling the fire.
“The relative humidities are breaking historic lows,” she said. “When you buy kiln-dried lumber from a hardware store, that’s usually dried to about 12%. Our fuel moisture levels out there on the ground right now are around 8%. … Anything that comes in contact with heat, fire is igniting and burning quickly.”
Even at night, she said conditions are meeting the National Weather Service’s red flag warnings as humidity levels don’t rise above the teens.
And while there was reduced fire growth yesterday, she said the team is not sure how much progress they will be able to make in the coming days.
“Any time mother nature wants to play nicer with us, we’re hoping that we can get a little bit more containment,” she said. “But we just don’t know.”
While a red flag warning remains in place Saturday through 10 p.m., there hasn’t been one issued for Sunday.
“We are hoping with this weather we can get a little bit of a stronger grip on this thing,” she said.
On Thursday, Gov. Spencer Cox issued a state of emergency.
“It’s been a while, it’s been a few years, since we’ve had one like this,” he said in a media briefing Friday morning.
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