Lightning strike ignites fire near Peekaboo Slot Canyon; extinguished within hours of report

On the morning of Fri­day, August 1, a sudden cloudburst resulted in some thunder and lightning ac­companied by only brief precipitation. Hikers near Peekaboo Slot Canyon, north of Kanab, reported one of the lightning strikes ignited a tree and some brush in the area, prompt­ing response from local fire management agencies.

Image courtesy of Nick Smith, Seldom Seen Adventures.

The earliest response was aerial deployment of retardant, which suppressed the main portion of the fire, with some cleanup neces­sary by local BLM and fire department responders.

Nick Smith, owner of Seldom Seen Adventures, recorded the early stages of the fire and aerial re­sponse. Smith stated in a social media post, “Today I got to witness something firsthand that I wasn’t expecting. These pilots were flying these planes with such precision, it was absolutely amazing to watch. Again, firefighters far and wide, in whatever way you’re serving, I am very grateful for you … I’m personally grateful because it’s quite near Peekaboo Slot Canyon, which we rely on for a lot of our tourism right now.”

The fire was controlled and contained within a few hours of the report, drawing praise for local fire response, and some criti­cism for the comparative passivity of the response to the Dragon Bravo ignition being allowed to burn as a controlled burn that broke containment.