Utah, 2016Wildfire in Utah, July 19 to 20, 2016
July 19 to 20, 2016 · NWS SLC · 1 event in 1 county or zone
On July 19, an arsonist intentionally set fire to a field in Tooele. Fanned by strong wind gusts, the fire was pushed to a nearby neighborhood, destroying and damaging several homes.
- Deaths
- 0
- Injuries
- 11
- Property damage
- $3.0 million
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 1
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.
On July 19, an arsonist intentionally set fire to a field in Tooele. Fanned by strong wind gusts, the fire was pushed to a nearby neighborhood, destroying and damaging several homes.
What forecasters said that day
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 Jul 19, 8:54 PM MST, 51 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, Jul 19, 8:54 PM MST, 51 minutes before
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Salt Lake City UT
954 PM MDT TUE JUL 19 2016
.SYNOPSIS...An upper level trough along the Pacific Northwest
coast will keep the Great Basin under a hot southwest flow aloft
through much of the week, with moisture remaining over southern
and eastern Utah. Drier weather is in store for the weekend and
into next week.
&&
.DISCUSSION...A southwest flow aloft remains in place over the
eastern Great Basin. With slightly drier air having spread into the
area from the west, convection was a bit more limited today. That
being said, scattered terrain-based convection this afternoon
decreased with the loss of daytime heating, while coming off the
terrain. However, a weak vort lobe rotating through the Four Corners
area will continue to spread a few showers and thunderstorms across
southeast Utah through late tonight.
Southwest flow will remain in place through Thursday with moisture
increasing slightly across western Utah. That being said, the bulk
of daily afternoon convection will still develop across the spine of
Utah and drift into the eastern valleys. The pattern is still
progged to shift beginning Friday with a drier westerly flow
developing across the area.
Made minor updates to the forecast but mainly for PoP/Sky/Wx for the
rest of the night.
&&
.AVIATION...Southerly winds will continue at the SLC terminal
through the night. These winds will remain occasionally breezy,
with a 15 percent chance of exceeding 26kt/30mph overnight.
&&
.SLC Watches/Warnings/Advisories...
UT...None.
WY...None.
&&
Cheng
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Wildfire, Salt Lake and Tooele Valleys
- When
- July 19, 9:45 PM MST to July 20, 5:00 AM MST
- Where
- Salt Lake and Tooele Valleys forecast zone
- Injuries
- 11 direct, 0 indirect
- Property damage
- $3.0 million
- Reported by
- Newspaper
An arsonist intentionally set fire to a field in Tooele on the night of July 19. The fire spread quickly into a nearby neighborhood due to gusty winds, with gusts generally in the 25-35 mph range. By the time firefighters had controlled the blaze by the morning of July 20, the fire had destroyed 10 homes and caused significant damage to 8 other homes. In addition, about eight cars and at least five outbuildings were destroyed. The fire also consumed trees and vinyl fences. Ten people were treated at the hospital for smoke inhalation, and at least three of those were first responders. One person was treated for a head injury from a fall related to the fire.
- Wildfire
- A fire burning in wildland vegetation, with its acreage and damage where known.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
- Tornado and Flash Flooding in Iowa, July 19, 2016$575,000 · EF0 · 111 events
- Hail and Lightning Strike in Colorado, July 19, 20161 death · 1 injured · 0.88 in hail · 3 events
- Damaging Wind and Lightning Strikes in Alabama, July 19, 20161 death · $11,000 · 3 events
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Virginia, July 19, 2016$76,000 · 2 in hail · 39 events
- Tornadoes and Hail in North Dakota, July 19, 2016EF1 · 28 events
- Tornadoes and Hail in Minnesota, July 19, 2016EF1 · 24 events
- Hail and Damaging Winds in Tennessee, July 19, 2016$51,000 · 56 kt wind · 13 events
- Flash Flood and Hail in North Carolina, July 19, 2016$32,000 · 1.75 in hail · 12 events
- Hail and Damaging Winds in North Carolina, July 19, 2016$23,000 · 1 in hail · 16 events
- Damaging Winds in Georgia, July 19 to 21, 2016$16,000 · 50 kt wind · 22 events
- Damaging Winds in Illinois, July 19, 2016$32,000 · 52 kt wind · 2 events
- Excessive Heat in South Dakota, July 19 to 22, 201626 events
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: 653884.