With several vegetation fires in the last few weeks, lack of road infrastructure, and low water tank levels will residents be safe if the city experiences a wildfire. What would happen if the city were to experience something like the Dump Fire of 2012 that forced 9,000 residents to evacuate, and destroyed 4,148 acres.
Fires
Lone Tree Fire – June 20th, 2024
At about 3:00 pm fire crews were called to the Lone Tree subdivision at Pine Cone Road in Eagle Mountain. A brush fire had consumed 3-4 acres of sage brush and was moving South towards the Oquirrh Mountain Ranch subdivision along Pony Express. The fire was contained after it had consumed 10 acres. The cause was listed as misuse of fire with non human factors contributing to the cause.
During the Lone Tree Fire residents complained about the break down in communication when that subdivision was notified of a pending evacuation. One resident told Cedar Valley Sentinel the following, “I felt so confused and powerless as the Lone Tree Fire progressed. I first noticed the smoke out my kitchen window in Cedar Pass Ranch. I reached out to people i know who live in Lone Tree to find out where it was burning. As I was chatting with one, I received the text evacuation order after hearing from residents near the fire that the fire was already out!” The resident continues, “I asked my friend if they received the text too. Some had, some didn’t. Residents were upset the order said to use alternate routes and were unaware of an alternate route for emergency ingress and egress for Lone Tree that had been identified.”
It should be noted that at this point there was also confusion on how residents could leave the Deer Haven subdivision in this event as well. The resident explains, “City council at the time [approval of Deer Haven] expressed concern over emergency access and that alternate route, along with a statement from the Fire Marshall, seemed to be an important part of the approval. I was asking myself why residents weren’t aware of the route of an evacuation plan. What happened? Was the route even still passable? There seemed to be a great deal of unnecessary confusion that made this [the fire evacuation] difficult situation even more stressful.”
The residents were extremely concerned for their friends and fellow residents in the area. “It was gut wrenching to see our neighbors go through such a frightening experience when we though a solution for evacuation had been out in place. We were stunned to learn it had not.” They continued that they thought the city would have taken steps to inform the residents of the evacuation route and make sure that it remained passable until the connection was made to Old Airport Road. “I can’t help but wonder what caused the city administration to lose track of such an important issue.”
According to this document the residents were expect to know and use a dirt road that head south out of the subdivision and eventually connects up with pony express south of the Oquirrh Mountain Ranches subdivision.
Cedar Pass Ranch Fire – July 4th
I have sent a GRAMA request to the UFA for details on this fire, but the details are still going through the finalization process before they can be released. I will post an update to the article when the details are released.
Roads
With the lack of roads allowing exit from the city, a major fire that causes evacuation will cause problems. And if the fire blocks any of the main exits from the Cedar Valley it can cause other issues. One of the roads that Eagle Mountain is touting as a fix to this issue is Airport road. A road that will connect Pony Express and SR-73 and give some relief to Pony Express through the Ranches Area. In an email on July 3rd, the City gave me this statement through their Communications Manager Tyler Maffitt.
“We’re excited to announce that Old Airport Road is currently under construction and expected to be completed in the late summer of 2025 prior to the opening of the new middle school, along with a traffic signal at its new intersection location with Cory Wride Memorial Highway (SR-73). The northern section of Airport Road (including a relocation of Belle Street) is currently in the design phase and will be constructed during the same timeline. Old Airport Road has been a priority of the City for some time, and will provide an important alternative to enter and exit the valley and offer increased convenience for residents. We look forward to providing updates as the construction continues. “
Airport road has been on the roadmap for years, the city has bonded for it and the residents are currently paying the interest on that bond. Back in September of 2021 the Cedar Valley Sentinel asked about Airport road, Mayor Westmoreland responded, “Though a short stretch of Airport Road, extending west from Pony Express Parkway will be completed this year, the remainder will be completed by end of October 2022. Once opened, Airport Road will provide another connection between Pony Express Parkway and SR-73. This will help take some traffic off of Eagle Mountain Boulevard and Pony Express Parkway. It will also create an opportunity for neighborhood developments in the area to connect as an alternate route.” The project did not complete as expected in October 2022, and now has a completion date of Summer 2025.
The city still allows development that at times uses other subdivisions as their only entrance and exit into the newly approved subdivision, which only increases the problem through already congested residential areas. One example is the Deer Haven subdivision that was approved only has one exit from that subdivision, and it is through Cedar Pass Ranch, the location of the July 4th fire. As noted above, this subdivision and parts of Lone Tree only have one exit in case of evacuation, and a temporary dirt road that residents are supposed to use if the other exit is blocked.
Water
On July 10th Mayor Westmoreland announced a “prohibition on the outdoor use of water” for an area in Eagle Mountain. The proclamation stated that the area was “suffering from a short term scarcity of water.” In the press release they stated that, “Eagle Mountain City is facing a critical water reduction impacting areas north of SR-73, otherwise known as Cory Wride Memorial Highway. It’s affecting around 1,200 homes. In response, the City is urgently asking residents in the affected area to refrain from watering their lawns through July 14.” The article continued, “The cooperation of the community is essential to achieving the best possible outcome. Without immediate action, homes in the impacted area could experience reduced water pressure and potential interruptions in water supply. Additionally, reduced water pressure can significantly impact the ability to maintain adequate fire protection, posing a potential safety risk.“
This water scarcity is nothing new. A report given the to City Council in December of 2020 explained that Eagle Mountain only had enough water to support its activities until 2049. In 2020 the report gave the City several recommendations.
- Finalize local limits for specific industries to achieve specific treatment and reuse objectives.
- Comprehensively evaluate water rights (resolve uncertainties).
- Raise industrial and residential water rates based on the outcome of a rate study.
- Work with CUWCD to secure additional supply.
- Collect more data on groundwater levels across the region.
- Refine the estimated sustainable groundwater pumping rate through groundwater modeling.
- Study Cedar Valley geology to site future rapid infiltration basins (RIBs) and/or aquifer storage and recovery (ASR).
- Prepare a secondary water master plan.
- Consider advanced water treatment to reduce the total dissolved solids (TDS) in EMC’s water supply and wastewater.
- Improve conservation efforts to efficiently use existing water.
I have asked the Mayor for updates on the recommendations on July 15th 2024 from the 2020 report, and have not received any word back from him in response to my request.
Emergency Operations Plan
On December 7th, 2021 the City Council passed Resolution No 4-262021 “A resolution of Eagle Mountain City, Utah adopting and approving an Emergency Operations Plan for Eagle Mountain City.”
The plan contains a list of the Major Roads and Evacuation Routes.
“There are two major roads that Eagle Mountain City residents can utilize during a full-scale evacuation of the city. Those two major roads are SR-73 and Pony Express Pkwy. The following evacuation routes utilize these major roads, and lead to the nearest interstate highway.
While only Eagle Mountain Blvd is listed in these evacuation routes as a road that connects Pony Express Pkwy to SR-73, it is important to note that Tiffany Lane, Ranches Parkway, and many residential roads throughout the city also connect Pony Express Pkwy to SR73, and therefore could be utilized instead of Eagle Mountain Blvd.”
Lets just hope that there is not a major evacuation event in Eagle Mountain that requires a large percentage of the residents to evacuate, and one that requires usage of major amounts of water to protect structures and property.
Mike Kieffer is an IT geek by hobby and trade, with a BS in Information Systems & Technology. He is a proud father of 10, a grandpa, an author, a journalist, and internet publisher. His motto is to “Elevate, Inspire and Inform”, and he is politically conservative and a Christian. Mike has a passion for technology, writing, and helping others. With a wealth of experience, he is committed to sharing his knowledge with others to help them reach their full potential. He is known for his jackassery or his form of self-expression that encourages boldness, creativity, and risk-taking. It can be a way to push the boundaries and challenge traditional norms, leading to creative solutions and positive change.