The Stookey Fire burned an estimated 550 acres in Tooele County, located west of the previous Iron and Cherry Fires. The wildfire was discovered east of Vernon just before 5:30 p.m. on a Friday and spread over hundreds of acres by Saturday morning, according to officials with Utah Fire Info.
As of early Saturday evening, no structures were threatened by the blaze.
Extreme fire behavior in juniper trees on Saturday reportedly made it unsafe for crews on the fire line. Due to these conditions, air assets engaged while ground teams reassessed their strategy.
Fire officials determined the cause of the fire to be natural, though details were not released as the matter remains under investigation. Several resources, including a dozer, water tenders, and helitack crews, assisted in the response. Officials did not release containment information.
The Stookey Fire occurred northwest of the Iron and Cherry Fires, which collectively burned over 76,000 acres before being contained. Those fires forced evacuations in late June across Eureka, Mammoth, Silver City, Lofgreen, and Vernon Reservoir.
Officials noted that Saturday's weather was expected to be dry and hot, conditions that typically worsen fire situations, though calm winds were expected to assist both ground and air efforts.
