Ma Nature lends a hand; rain helping crews hem in Utah wildfires

While Tuesday's showers provided protection against wildfires across the state, they also hampered crews, some of which had to shut down firefighting operations in the storms.

Rockslides, flash floods and road closures kept crews in Juab County away from the Levan Wildfire, which was burning on 4,343 acres in Juab County's remote, rugged and steep high desert, said Dorothy Harvey, spokeswoman for fire operations.

Containment had been estimated at 65 percent, but crews were unable to view the perimeter as of Tuesday night.

"The rains we've had really gave our firefighters a foot up on containment," she said. "We're estimating full containment by Friday."

No structures have been destroyed by the fire, though shortly after it began on July 24, flames burned within a mile of the tiny town of Levan.

The fire was believed human-caused, but its genesis remained under investigation.

The lightning-caused Black Crook Peak Fire in south Tooele County was declared 100 percent contained. It had burned 670 acres as of Tuesday, according to Fire Information Officer Kathy Jo Pollock.

The human-caused Spring Canyon Fire, having blackened 140 acres about a mile east of Springville, was 90 percent contained, Fire Information Officer Kim Osborn said.

"Crews will continue with mop-up operations," she said, noting that heavy smoke was expected throughout Tuesday as the flames consume remaining pockets of oak brush within the interior of the blaze.

There was no estimate for full containment, though Osborn noted that only one 20-person crew was monitoring the fire.

remims@sltrib.com

Twitter: @remims