MAGNA, Utah — As big wildfires spark in Utah this summer, people living in one Magna neighborhood say the risk isn’t something they can ignore — it’s right in their backyard.
“We live in a beautiful, beautiful place,” Malinda Burrell, a Magna resident, said. “But it’s also very dry.”
The neighborhood, which is full of townhomes, is on Magna’s west side, near Kennecott and the base of the Oquirrh Mountains, where some nearby areas are considered high fire risk.
“If we’re anywhere close to the edges of the valley, whether it’s west side like we are or east side, you back up to just these big open spaces,” Patrick Costin, a captain with Unified Fire Authority, said. “There’s always some risk.”
That tension is something neighbors like Burrell, who has lived in the neighborhood for 4 years, say they feel every year when temperatures rise.
“We obviously know there’s a big dry mountain and surrounding fields around it that are all dry,” Burrell said. “So, every time this year comes around, it’s nerve-wracking every time you hear a firework go off.”
The area is near Cordero Drive, off 8400 West in the Little Valley Gateway neighborhood.
“We don’t have a lot of ways to exit this community,” she said. “We have, to the east, really one main way.”
It’s something she’s been thinking about since earlier this summer, before big fires like the Cottonwood Fire in Beaver and the Cherry and Iron Fire in Juab County sparked.
“It would be nice to have a west exit because what if there’s a fire on that mountain or in the fields and we need to evacuate?” she explains.
She says she worries about all those people trying to get out while first responders get in.
Costin says there are simple steps people can take now to protect their homes, like keeping grass short and clearing away anything that could easily catch fire.
“Most of these fires are caused by people, so just be aware of what you’re doing on those hot, dry, windy days,” he said. “Probably not the best day to burn your weeds or do your BBQ in the backyard.”
Still, Burrell says prevention only goes so far without a clear plan in place.
“An exit to the west would be nice, and just some guidelines,” Burrell said. “There is some emergency preparedness for the city, but we’re up against the mountain. How far can you really go to try to get out of here?”
For now, neighbors say they’re staying aware and hoping answers come before the next fire does.
