The blaze had grown to between 200 and 600 acres by early evening on July 10.
(Shelby Rutter) Smoke billows from what Utah fire officials have named the Deer Creek Fire near Old La Sal in San Juan County on Thursday evening.
A wildfire near the Old La Sal in San Juan County has prompted authorities to order the evacuation of part of the community, including Deer Creek and Deer Haven roads, according to a dispatcher in Monticello.
Some residents in Old La Sal have been evacuated to the town of La Sal, roughly 10 miles away. About 300 people live in La Sal, but not all of them were under evacuation orders as of late afternoon on July 10.
San Juan County, in a social media post, said the fire on Deer Creek Road prompted people in the area to leave and suggested those who were displaced could go to the Community Center in La Sal to get out of the heat.
The Old La Sal Road was closed to all traffic until further notice on Thursday afternoon, according to the San Juan County Sheriff’s Office.
Utah Fire Info reported the blaze had grown to between 200 and 600 acres by early evening. It is burning on private land, and the cause was not immediately known. KSL reported that no structures had been damaged as of yet, but some homes are threatened. Emergency crews remain actively engaged, and evacuations are ongoing.
A San Juan County resident told The Times-Independent by text message that the fire was “big” and growing. “Lots of structures are threatened,” she wrote.
Critical fire weather conditions fueled the blaze, with the National Weather Service reporting wind gusts up to 35 mph and relative humidity levels as low as 6% across southeast Utah. A red flag warning for areas east of the Colorado River, including San Juan County, was in effect through Thursday.
Friday is expected to be less windy, though hot and dry weather will persist into the weekend, potentially extending fire concerns, according to KSL. Forecasters say monsoonal moisture could return by the following weekend, offering some relief.
This is a developing story.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to clarify that the fire is burning near Old La Sal, about 10 miles from the town of La Sal, where evacuees are being sheltered. It also includes new details on highway closures, weather conditions and the ongoing fire threat.
This story was first published by The Times-Independent.