Crews mopping up last remnants of Utah's lightning wildfires

Some shovel work here and with a dousing with water there, firefighters were mopping up remaining hot spots Friday as they tamed smoldering remnants of lightning-caused blazes that had scorched more than 70,000 acres of Utah desert, range and forests.

Crews expected to declare 100 percent containment of Tooele County's Patch Springs Fire by 10 p.m. Saturday, according to Fire Information Officer Bryanna Kuhlman.

The Patch Springs blaze, ignited by an Aug. 10 thunderstorm, had blackened 31,010 acres of juniper, sagebrush and timber south, west and east of Deseret Peak and on the Goshute Indian Reservation in Skull Valley. Flames also destroyed five homes, eight outbuildings and one business.

The nearly 30,000-acre State Fire, which burned within northern Utah's Box Elder County and southern Idaho's Pocatello Valley, was to be officially declared 100 percent contained late Sunday.

The almost 2,900-acre Millville Fire in Cache County, too, was almost contained. All restrictions and evacuations for Blacksmith Fork, Millville and Left Hand Fork canyons were lifted earlier this week.

remims@sltrib.com

Twitter: @remims