Report: 14 percent of Utah homes at risk of wildfire
Jul 31, 2018, 8:54 AM
Nevada's China Jim Fire and the Goose Creek Fire combined Sunday evening, forming a fire that measures roughly 156 square miles and is threatening houses in nearby Grouse Creek, Box Elder County. (Photo: Matt Dennis)
(Photo: Matt Dennis)
SALT LAKE CITY — 14 percent of Utah households are at high or extreme risk of catching fire from a wildfire and Utah ranks 9th highest in the nation for the number of houses that are vulnerable.
An insurance data analytics firm analyzed data in each state to help people determine the chance of their homes going up in flames and it showed Utah has 133,000 homes at risk across the state.
A firefighter with Cal Fire Mendocino Unit walks along a containment line as a wildfire advances on July 30, 2018, in Lakeport, Calif. (Photo: MARCIO JOSE SANCHEZ, AP)
Active Utah Wildfires as of July 31, 2018. (Photo: screengrab UtahFireInfo.com)
It’s hot and dry across the west, more intense fires are thus being fueled by dry vegetation, and nationally fire danger was just raised to its highest level.
In California, the state with the highest number of homes at risk, experts blame housing that’s expanding onto undeveloped lands.
