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Officials warn residents to prep their properties for fire season

Posted at 10:20 PM, Jun 06, 2016
and last updated 2016-06-07 09:40:47-04

SALT LAKE COUNTY, Utah -- Fire season is heating up for surrounding states Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Arizona and California, scorching several hundred acres.

Some Utah crews are out battling those blazes.

“We’ve been helping there with the anticipation that when we need their help they will return the favor,” said Jason Curry, spokesman for Utah Division of Fire, Forestry and State Lands.

Curry said it's only a matter of time until the flames spark in Utah. The Division of Forestry is warning homeowners to get ready.

Brianna Bennebose, coordinator for Wasatch Front Wildland Interface, said they are working with people to get their individual properties ready for the season and maintaining defensible space around their homes.

Creating a defensible space means building a buffer between a building the grass, trees or shrubs surrounding it.

“We see it time and time again each season one house here that has done the work the next house didn’t and sometimes that is the ultimate difference maker for people,” Curry said.

“You can see where fires stopped outside of homes where they had been actively managing their vegetation,” Beinnebose said.

There are tips and even people who can help you. You can find those resources at utahfireinfo.gov