Utah fire chiefs warn dry spring has already launched wildfire season

If you are planning a canyon camp, a foothills hike, or an overland weekend in Utah, the warning from fire chiefs changes the trip now: wildfire season is not waiting for summer. Leaders from the Salt Lake City Fire Department, Unified Fire Authority, Sandy Fire Department, and Draper Fire Department said dry winter conditions and below-average snowpack have already left grasses and shrubs ready to burn.

Salt Lake City Fire Chief Karl Lieb said it plainly on May 4: "we are in wildfire season." That warning carried extra weight because Utah’s snowpack peaked early, on March 9, at 8.4 inches, the lowest on record, and statewide runoff is forecast at about 50% of normal. The Utah Division of Water Resources said all of Utah is in drought and 59% is in extreme drought, which means a spark can meet tinder even before the hottest part of summer arrives.

For campers and drivers, the practical risk is not abstract. Sandy Fire Chief Ryan McConaghie said about 70% of Utah wildfires last year were human-caused. A separate state update showed human-caused fires made up about 85% of the 117 fires reported by the end of April, including the April 22 Goshen Canyon Fire in Utah County, which burned 408 acres. That is the kind of fast-moving start that can shut down a trail, block a canyon road, or turn a planned overnight into an evacuation.

State forecasters have already pushed the danger line onto the map. Above-normal fire conditions were projected for southwest Utah and northwest Arizona in May, with the risk expected to spread across most of Utah by June and statewide by July. Strong winds can quickly turn dry fuel into a running fire, especially in foothills, canyon country, and other wildland-urban interface areas where trails, homes, and access roads sit close together.

The takeaway for recreation planning is immediate. Check fire restrictions before leaving home, skip anything that throws sparks near dry vegetation, keep trailer chains from dragging, do not park on grass, and leave grinders, welders, and careless cigarette use out of the equation. The governor’s wildfire preparedness order said Utah faces wildfire risk throughout the year, and state fire officials have said Fire Sense reduced human-caused wildfires by almost 75% from 2020 to 2023. In a year like this, the safest trip is the one planned with wildfire already in mind.