This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Though the Baboon Fire was declared contained four days ago, flames appeared again Friday and burned an additional 1,500 acres of land.
The initial fire was lightning-sparked and blackened over 19,000 acres in Beaver County after it began July 13. Officials said they aren't sure if Friday's flames ignited from smoldering embers or if it was a new fire in the same area.
"We don't know if it was the original Baboon Fire flaring up again, or what the deal is," said Nick Howell, information officer with the Bureau of Land Management. Howell said Friday's fire sparked around 11:30 a.m., and by 2 p.m., the flames had already spread across 200 acres and was rapidly moving south.
Highway 130 was closed because of the fire, but was opened later that afternoon. No structures have been threatened.
Meanwhile, fire crews are working to contain two other wildfires in Utah, and one nearby in Arizona.
The Lighthouse Fire in Emery County was 50 percent contained Friday, and officials said the fire had torched through 862 acres.
Several archeological sites were threatened by the Lighthouse Fire, including rock art, granaries, pit and cliff dwellings, burial sites and other points of archaeological interest along Range Creek.
The fire appeared to be burning over some of those sites, but Duncan Metcalfe, director of the Range Creek Field Station for the University of Utah, said Thursday that the fire may not have destroyed the historical artifacts. The Clay Springs Fire was fully contained Friday after it had burned through 107,846 acres near Oak City in Millard County. The fire is thought to be human-caused, but is still under investigation.
The Hobble Complex fire, which is burning 35 miles south of St. George along the Arizona border, was expected to be fully contained Friday. The 35,000-acre fire was sparked Wednesday by lightning.
Twitter: @jm_miller