Wildfire smoke blankets Moab as Cottonwood Fire drives regional haze
Smoke from the Cottonwood Fire turned Moab’s sky yellow, with haze thick enough to smell by afternoon and conditions shifting across the Four Corners.
A yellow haze settled over Moab as smoke from the Cottonwood Fire in Fishlake National Forest and other regional blazes drifted into the valley. By afternoon on June 23, the smoke was visible across town and strong enough to smell, while NOAA satellite imagery showed a plume directly over Moab and low-cost sensors in the area registered moderate air quality.
The smoke was not coming from a fire in Moab. Shifting winds carried it in from large fires burning across Utah and Nevada. The Cottonwood Fire started Monday, June 22, near Cottonwood Campground on the Beaver Ranger District, and the U.S. Forest Service closed State Route 153 in both directions between mileposts 2 and 25. By June 23, the fire had grown to more than 27,000 acres with 0% containment. The fire was human-caused. Later infrared mapping put it closer to 24,100 acres, and containment was still at zero because of the terrain.
Smoke trims visibility, raises the cost of exertion and can turn a long day outside into a short one. That is especially true on exposed ridgelines, slickrock routes and river stretches where the air hangs low in the heat. Coughing, throat irritation, watery eyes, chest tightness or unusual fatigue are signs to shorten the day and back off hard efforts. The EPA and USFS AirNow Fire and Smoke Map tracks PM2.5 readings, smoke plumes and active fire information before heading out.
Grand County EMS sent paramedic Jordan Lister and advanced EMT Maggie Nielsen to support the Iron Fire near Eureka, which had burned 31,314 acres and was 9% contained. Grand County EMS provides ambulance service 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, along with rescue, disaster response and public education, and its crews complete specialized wildland fire training each year before deployments.
Moab Valley Fire Department also sent Engine 161 and a crew to the Rock Canyon Fire near Fredonia, Arizona. That lightning-caused fire started June 15 about 18 miles east of Fredonia, and it was listed at 4,823 acres and 50% containment on June 22, then updated to 75% by June 23.
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