A debris burn near Toquerville, Utah got out of control on May 1st, becoming a wildfire in rural Washington County.
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The episode as NWS SLC wrote it up.
A debris burn near Toquerville, Utah got out of control on May 1st, becoming a wildfire in rural Washington County.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Salt Lake City, UT wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at May 1, 2:53 PM MST, 7 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SALT LAKE CITY UT 353 PM MDT TUE MAY 1 2012 .SYNOPSIS...A SURFACE FRONT WILL REMAIN DRAPED OVER CENTRAL UTAH THROUGH THE END OF THE WEEK. A SERIES OF WEAK DISTURBANCES WILL PASS THROUGH THE REGION WITHIN WESTERLY FLOW ALOFT. && .DISCUSSION...CYCLONICLY ORIENTED UPPER LEVEL JET REMAINS ENTRENCHED ACROSS THE WESTERN CONUS AT THIS TIME. PROGRESSIVE PATTERN TO REMAIN IN PLACE THROUGH MIDWEEK WITH THE NEXT IN A SERIES OF SHORT WAVES JUST NOW REACHING THE PACNW. WITH A STALLED SURFACE FRONT DRAPED ACROSS CENTRAL UTAH AND REMNANT 700MB BAROCLINICITY OVER THE NORTH EXPECTING PRECIP TO LIGHT UP AGAIN LATER TONIGHT AS THE WAVE PASSES THROUGH THE NORTHERN ROCKIES STATES. NOT EXPECTING ORGANIZATION TO BE AS FOCUSED OR EFFICIENT AS THIS MORNINGS PRECIP EVENT AS BAROCLINICITY HAS BECOME A BIT MORE DIFFUSE AND PWATS HAVE DROPPED BY ALMOST A QUARTER OF AN INCH...BUT STILL LOOKING AT LIKELY POPS FOR MUCH OF THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN WASATCH FRONT ON EAST. SHORT WAVE PASSAGE BY MIDDAY WEDNESDAY WILL USHER AN EVEN DRIER AIRMASS WHILST DRIVING A TOUCH OF MID LEVEL SUBSIDENCE FOR THE PM HOURS. CAN NOT RULE SHALLOW CONVECTION ACROSS THE NORTH FOR THE AFTERNOON BUT REDUCED POPS SIGNIFICANTLY TO ACCOUNT FOR AN ANTICIPATED WANE IN PRECIP WITHIN DRIER AND MORE STABLE AIRMASS. HAVE ALSO REMOVED MENTION OF THUNDER ALONG THESE SAME LINES. THE MEAN LONGWAVE TROUGH WILL AMPLIFY TO OUR WEST FOR THE LATTER HALF OF THE WEEK...SURFACE FRONT TO LIFT NORTH TOWARDS THE IDAHO BORDER AS A RESULT. HAVE RETAINED CHANCE POPS ACROSS THE FAR NORTH FOR NOW BUT CONFIDENCE IS GROWING A BIT THAT FOCUSED PRECIP WILL BE NORTH OVER IDAHO/WESTERN WYOMING. THIS THINKING IN MOST PART DUE TO A BIT MORE CONSISTENCY IN LATEST 12Z EC/GFS RUNS. SAID CONSISTENCY REVERTING BACK TO YESTERDAYS IDEA OF A BROAD CLOSED/CUT OFF LOW SPINNING UP OVER THE INTERIOR GREAT BASIN LATE THIS WEEKEND INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK. IF BIG PICTURE SOLUTION PANS OUT LOOKING AT QUITE A WARM DAY FRIDAY...ANOTHER COLD FRONTAL PASSAGE SATURDAY...AND EVOLUTION OF WRAP AROUND/UPGLIDE PRECIP FOCUSED OVER THE NORTHEAST EARLY NEXT WEEK. FOR NOW HAVE TRENDED TEMPS IN SAID DIRECTION AND FOCUSED AREAL COVERAGE OF POPS TOWARDS THE DRIVING MECHANISMS MENTIONED ABOVE. AWAITING A BIT MORE RUN TO RUN CONSISTENCY PRIOR TO COMPLETELY LATCHING ON HOWEVER. && .AVIATION...A DISTURBANCE PUSHING ACROSS THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST THIS AFTERNOON WILL MOVE ACROSS IDAHO THIS EVENING INTO TONIGHT. THIS WILL HELP TO BRING A FRONT NORTHWARD INTO THE VICINITY OF THE AIRPORT TONIGHT. SHOWERS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP ALONG THIS BOUNDARY AFTER 06Z AND REMAIN POSSIBLE THROUGH WEDNESDAY MORNING. WINDS IN THE VICINITY OF THE FRONT/SHOWERS ARE EXPECTED TO SHIFT SOUTHERLY...HOWEVER THERE IS A 40 PERCENT CHANCE WINDS WILL REMAIN NORTHERLY THROUGH THE OVERNIGHT HOURS AND INTO TOMORROW MORNING. CEILINGS MAY DECREASE TO NEAR 4000 FEET AGL IN SHOWERS BETWEEN 06-15Z. && .FIRE WEATHER...A COLD FRONT PUSHED THROUGH NORTHERN AND CENTRAL UTAH THIS MORNING AND HAS NOW STALLED ACROSS THE SOUTH. WEAK WEATHER SYSTEMS PASSING MAINLY NORTH OF UTAH WILL DRAW THIS FRONT NORTH AND PUSH IT SOUTH AGAIN OVER THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS. THERE WILL BE A CHANCE OF SHOWERS AND ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS ALONG THIS BOUNDARY AND THE AIRMASS NORTH OF THE BOUNDARY WILL BE COOLER AND SOMEWHAT MOIST. IT WILL BE DRIER AND WARMER SOUTH OF THE BOUNDARY WITH BREEZY AFTERNOON SOUTHWEST WINDS AND FAIRLY LOW AFTERNOON HUMIDITIES. A SOMEWHAT STRONGER SYSTEM WILL APPROACH THE AREA FRIDAY WITH THE DRIER SOUTH WINDS BECOMING STRONGER AND COVERING MORE OF THE AREA. THE COLD FRONT WITH THIS SYSTEM WILL MOVE THROUGH NORTHERN UTAH SATURDAY WITH THE STRONGER WINDS CONTINUING ACROSS THE SOUTH AND EAST. AFTERNOON HUMIDITIES WILL FALL EVEN LOWER SOUTH OF THE FRONT FRIDAY AND SATURDAY. THIS COMBINED WITH THE WINDS MAY SEND FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS TO NEAR CRITICAL LEVELS ACROSS SOUTHERN AND EASTERN UTAH VALLEYS. && .SLC WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... UT...NONE. WY...NONE. && MERRILL/KRUSE/WILENSKY FOR MORE INFORMATION FROM NOAA/S NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE VISIT... HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/SALTLAKECITY (ALL LOWER CASE) FOR FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT THE AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION VISIT... HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/SALTLAKECITY/GENERAL/AFD_FAQS.PHP (ALL LOWER CASE)
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SALT LAKE CITY UT 322 AM MDT TUE MAY 1 2012 UTZ001>016-019>021-517-518-WYZ021-021100- CACHE VALLEY/UTAH PORTION-NORTHERN WASATCH FRONT- SALT LAKE AND TOOELE VALLEYS-SOUTHERN WASATCH FRONT- GREAT SALT LAKE DESERT AND MOUNTAINS-WASATCH MOUNTAIN VALLEYS- WASATCH MOUNTAINS I-80 NORTH-WASATCH MOUNTAINS SOUTH OF I-80- WESTERN UINTA MOUNTAINS-WASATCH PLATEAU/BOOK CLIFFS- WESTERN UINTA BASIN-CASTLE COUNTRY-SAN RAFAEL SWELL- SANPETE/SEVIER VALLEYS-WEST CENTRAL UTAH-SOUTHWEST UTAH- UTAHS DIXIE AND ZION NATIONAL PARK-SOUTH CENTRAL UTAH- GLEN CANYON RECREATION AREA/LAKE POWELL-CENTRAL MOUNTAINS- SOUTHERN MOUNTAINS-SOUTHWEST WYOMING- 322 AM MDT TUE MAY 1 2012 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE WESTERN TWO THIRDS OF UTAH AND SOUTHWEST WYOMING. .DAY ONE...TODAY AND TONIGHT THE SPRING SNOW MELT IS UNDERWAY AND WATERS ARE SWIFT AND COLD IN STREAMS AND RIVERS ACROSS THE OUTLOOK AREA. REMEMBER TO KEEP CHILDREN AND PETS AT A SAFE DISTANCE FROM WATERWAYS AS THESE WATERS CAN BE VERY DANGEROUS. A COLD FRONT STALLED ACROSS NORTHERN UTAH WILL SERVE AS A FOCUS FOR VALLEY RAIN AND HIGH ELEVATION SNOWFALL THIS MORNING. THIS PRECIPITATION IS EXPECTED TO BECOME SHOWERY BY AFTERNOON WITH ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS POSSIBLE. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...WEDNESDAY THROUGH MONDAY A SERIES OF WEAK DISTURBANCES WILL CONTINUE TO BRING CHANCES FOR VALLEY RAIN AND HIGH ELEVATION SNOWFALL ACROSS NORTHERN PORTIONS OF THE OUTLOOK AREA THROUGH WEDNESDAY...AND LIKELY INTO THURSDAY. ISOLATED AFTERNOON THUNDERSTORMS CAN BE EXPECTED AS WELL DURING THIS TIME. AN UNSETTLED WEATHER PATTERN LOOKS TO CONTINUE INTO THE UPCOMING WEEKEND. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES. FOR MORE INFORMATION FROM NOAA/S NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE VISIT... HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/SALTLAKECITY (ALL LOWER CASE) FOR INFORMATION ON POTENTIAL TRAVEL IMPACTS VISIT... HTTP://WWW.COMMUTERLINK.UTAH.GOV/ROADWEATHERFORECAST.ASPX
1 wildfire. Local standard time, as filed.
A private debris burn turned into a wildfire near Toquerville, with flames consuming approximately 250 acres of grassland. Two firefighters suffered heat exhaustion while fighting the blaze; one was treated at the scene, while the other was taken to the hospital for observation.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Utah in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Utah, May 2012
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 368469.