ST. GEORGE — Vehicle fires on Interstate 15 between Toquerville and New Harmony, as well as in Kolob Canyon, sent black smoke into an otherwise blue Independence Day sky.
The fires also delayed traffic and, in two of the cases, blackened brush along I-15.
The first car fire took place around 12:30 p.m. on northbound I-15 in New Harmony, and authorities said it was a new pickup truck that went up in flames.
“A gentleman had just gotten a new pickup, and he saw indicator lights flashing,” New Harmony Fire Department Chief Jim Banks told St. George News. “The catalytic converter malfunctioned and he pulled over and the car started burning up and it sparked the brush.”
Banks said approximately 3.25 acres ultimately burned, resulting in a blackened side of the freeway near the Kolob Canyons Exit. The scorched earth extended to the asphalt, but Banks said there was no danger of the fire leaping to the other side of the freeway, where there were homes.
“Fortunately, the wind was blowing south, so it was contained to the freeway,” Banks said.
There was no need for air support or water drops, but firefighters from Cedar City, Kanaraville, Utah State Fire Marshal’s Office, and the Bureau of Land Management assisted.
“We were able to get it controlled fairly quickly,” Banks said.
The fire closed the far right lane of I-15 and Exit 40 for about an hour and a half.
About 30 minutes later, approximately 9 miles east, a truck pulling a trailer on the dirt Upper Basin Road in Kolob Canyons reportedly overheated and caught fire. Despite the wooded area, Hurricane Valley Fire District Chief Joe Decker said his firefighters managed to keep flames from more than a “minimal amount of spread to brush.”
About 30 minutes after the first vehicle fire on Interstate 15 was cleared, firefighters said a Range Rover sports utility vehicle towing a boat caught fire 10 miles south on the same northbound side and pulled over.
Hurricane Valley firefighters also responded to this blaze in Anderson Junction around mile marker 30 around 2:30 p.m.
The fire was put out within an hour, and the burned brush was limited to the area around the vehicle and the boat, which were both blackened, charred and total losses.
Traffic was slowed, but all lanes of north I-15 remained open other than the right shoulder.
With excessive heat warnings from the National Weather Service and temperatures expected in the 110s over the next week, Banks said drivers need to be more alert to the health of their vehicles to make sure vehicles don’t overheat, especially going up the Anderson Junction hill.
“Pay attention to engine and transmission temperature gauges, especially when towing,” Banks said. “Watch warning lights and stop in a safe location if you suspect your vehicle is getting too hot.”
Photo Gallery
A pickup is covered in flames and black smoke on northbound Interstate 15 New Harmony, Utah, July 4, 2024 | Photo courtesy of New Harmony Fire Department, St. George News A Range Rover is charred on a shoulder of northbound Interstate 15 near Anderson Junction, Toquerville, Utah, July 4, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Joely Nelson, St. George News A boat that was being towed by a Range Roveris charred on a shoulder of northbound Interstate 15 near Anderson Junction, Toquerville, Utah, July 4, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Joely Nelson, St. George News A boat that was being towed by a Range Roveris charred on a shoulder of northbound Interstate 15 near Anderson Junction, Toquerville, Utah, July 4, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Joely Nelson, St. George News A Range Rover towing a boat is engulfed in flames on a shoulder of northbound Interstate 15 near Anderson Junction, Toquerville, Utah, July 4, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Heidi Leerssen, St. George News Firefighters work on dousing burning brush near a pickup ithat caught fire on northbound Interstate 15 New Harmony, Utah, July 4, 2024 | Photo courtesy of New Harmony Fire Department, St. George News Firefighters work on dousing burning brush near a pickup ithat caught fire on northbound Interstate 15 New Harmony, Utah, July 4, 2024 | Photo courtesy of New Harmony Fire Department, St. George News Firefighters work on dousing burning brush near a pickup ithat caught fire on northbound Interstate 15 New Harmony, Utah, July 4, 2024 | Photo courtesy of New Harmony Fire Department, St. George News A Range Rover pulling a boat caught fire on Interstate 15 near Anderson Junction, Toquerville, Utah, July 4, 2024 | Photo courtesy of Hurricane Valley Fire & Rescue, St. George News
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