Gov. Spencer Cox warned Friday that Utah is “in the thick of wildfire season” and described several large, fast-moving blazes across the state while urging residents to conserve water.

The governor said multiple large fires are burning, driven by hot, dry and windy conditions. He cited the Deer Creek Fire south of Moab (more than 15,000 acres, 7% contained), the Monroe Canyon Fire in Sevier County (about 8,646 acres, 0% contained), the Forsyth Fire near St. George (nearly 16,000 acres, 83% contained and 13 homes destroyed) and the France Canyon Fire near Bryce Canyon (about 35,000 acres, 90% contained). Cox said 72 percent of this year’s wildfires have been human caused.

The situation matters because Utah’s reservoirs and soil moisture are declining while fuels on the landscape are unusually dry. Cox said reservoir levels fell about 10% between June 1 and July 1, that statewide storage sits at roughly 77% of capacity (about 12% lower than the same time last year), and that “100% of the state is now in moderate to severe drought.” He framed human-caused ignitions — abandoned campfires, dragging trailer chains, target shooting in dry brush — as preventable contributors to the season’s severity.

“We are in the thick of wildfire season right now, and, unfortunately, we're seeing exactly the kind of extreme fire behavior we hoped that we would not,” Cox said, adding that some fires have produced uncommon behavior including a fire whirl that damaged equipment and structures. He thanked firefighters, first responders and community leaders for their work and asked residents to visit utahfireinfo.gov for prevention guidance.

On water use, Cox urged conservation and promoted state resources: slowtheflow.org for county-specific lawn-watering guidance and state rebates and incentives for water savings. “It’s okay to have yellow lawns this year. We give you permission,” he said.

Cox also noted that the state has requested and received favorable Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) determinations from FEMA for federal reimbursement of certain firefighting costs. He said FEMA had approved the state’s FMAG requests within 24 hours of submission.

Discussion points recorded during the news conference included: the role of land and fuels management in reducing fire severity; the interplay of climate and previous wet years that produced abundant grass and brush that have since dried; and homeowner actions (defensible space/WUI mitigation). Cox credited land treatments where fuels reduction work had been done and said more treatment will be needed to reduce risk in heavily vegetated slopes.

Ending: The governor closed by repeating the prevention requests and pointing Utahns to state resources for water conservation and wildfire information. He also noted he had issued a statewide proclamation declaring a day of prayer and fasting for rain and encouraged residents to follow safety guidance during the ongoing fire season.