UPDATED: Brush fire near Rockville shuts down SR-9 west of Zion National Park

Written by Mori Kessler
June 7, 2024

ST. GEORGE — A brush fire that started near Rockville Friday afternoon at approximately 3:30 p.m. and resulted in the closure of state Route 9, according to the Utah Department of Transportation.

A brush fire has shut down traffic on SR-9 between Rockville and Springdale, Utah, June 7, 2024 | Photo courtesy of James W. King, St. George News

Eastbound SR-9  closed at milepost 28 (Rockville) and westbound at milepost 30 (Zion Park Boulevard). UDOT officials originally projected the road may be reopened around 4:30 p.m. and then updated it maybe closer to midnight instead. It did not take this long, though, as UDOT updates showed the area reopened to travel by 9 p.m.

Commuters can check the UDOT traffic website for further details surrounding the closure here.

Color Country Interagency Fire reported around 4:30 p.m. that the fire, now called the Rockville Fire, is estimated to be at 30 acres in size. While the forward progression of the fire has been stopped as of 6 p.m., multiple structures remain threatened, according to Utah Fire Info. Evacuations called early on have also been lifted.

The public is asked to continue to avoid the area as firefighters continue to respond to the event.

Rocky Mountain Power reported around 4:20 p.m. that over 1,000 customer across Rockville and Springdale are without power. Crews were dispatched to the area and had the power restored to the majority of Rocky Mountain Power’s costumers by 8 p.m.

The fire is human caused and under investigation, according to the Color Color Interagency Fire Center.

A brush fire has shut down traffic on SR-9 between Rockville and Springdale, Utah, June 7, 2024 | Photo courtesy of James W. King, St. George News

Local, state and federal agencies have responded to the Rockville Fire and contributed 15 fire engines, one hotshot crew, two single engine airtankers, two large airtankers, two type 1 helicopters, and two air attack platform supervision.

Updated 8:15 p.m. June 8: Utah Fire Info updated acreage to an estimated 73 acres burned.

“No structures damaged,” according to the media update. “Some resources have been released. Hotshot crew and 3 engines will remain on the fire to continue containment of fire lines.”

Updated 12:45 p.m. June 9: Utah Fire Info reported the fire is 60% contained and now estimated at 72 acres.

“Firefighters are still on scene continuing mop up operations on the fire,” the update stated. “Mop up operations involve lots of physical labor where firefighters search for and  extinguish all heat and fire near the fire line.”

Updated 4:37 p.m. June 9: Hurricane Valley Fire District Wildland Capt. Steve Harris reported to Springdale Mayor Stanley Smith that the Rockville Fire is currently 80 percent contained, with full containment expected by tonight.

“There is nothing threatening, but he will have a couple of engines check on the fire again tomorrow,” the mayor’s office said in an email to St. George News. “The State of Utah is currently investigating the origin of the fire and we’ll know more soon.”

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2024, all rights reserved.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mori Kessler serves as a Senior Reporter for St. George News, having previously contributed as a writer and Interim Editor in 2011-12, and an assistant editor from 2012 to mid-2014. He began writing news as a freelancer in 2009 for Today in Dixie, and joined the writing staff of St. George News in mid-2010. He enjoys photography and won an award for photojournalism from the Society of Professional Journalists for a 2018 photo of a bee inspector removing ferals bees from a Washington City home. He is also a shameless nerd and has a bad sense of direction.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @MoriKessler@STGnews

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