With Cottonwood fire nearby, Moab council approves fire agreements and mayor to issue fireworks ban

The Moab City Council moved on June 23 to shore up emergency wildfire readiness as large blazes burned in the region.

Staff and fire officials told the council the city must maintain preparedness and mitigation commitments to qualify for state cost-sharing if a fire moves beyond initial attack. Clark Mann, a wildland fire expert speaking at the meeting, described the Cooperative Wildfire System (CWS) agreement as "basically the city's insurance policy for large fires," saying the state will absorb costs for extended-attack events if local duties are met.

Why it matters: State support for large wildfires is conditioned on local commitments to prevention, reporting, equipment readiness and initial attack capabilities. With high Energy Release Component (ERC) indices and active large fires in southern Utah, councilors said maintaining these agreements and clear delegation to the fire district is essential.

Immediate decisions and actions

- The council adopted an interlocal agreement delegating fire protection duties to Moab Valley Fire Protection District and approved the CWS agreement with Utah Forestry, Fire and State Lands (both motions passed 5-0).

- Councilors agreed that, given current conditions and the prospect of stage-two restrictions on state and county lands, the mayor should sign an emergency declaration banning the use of consumer fireworks within city limits for public-safety reasons. The mayor said he would sign that emergency declaration without waiting for a later council vote; the council supported that approach.

What officials told the council

Clark Mann noted that the Cottonwood fire had grown to roughly 25,000 acres in about 24 hours and that ERCs in Southeast Utah were at the 97th—to—99th percentile, creating conditions for rapid, intense fire spread. He explained that "initial attack" refers to putting a fire out during the first operational period; when fires exceed that phase they move to an "extended attack" that requires aircraft, large crews and much higher costs.

Council and staff emphasized outreach and enforcement options if restrictions become necessary, and asked staff to coordinate communications about the fireworks ban ahead of the July 4 holiday. The mayor noted that the emergency declaration will prohibit use of fireworks inside city limits but that banning the sale of fireworks is outside the council—s authority.

Next steps

- Implementation: the mayor will sign the emergency declaration to ban fireworks within city limits and staff will execute the interlocal and CWS agreements.

- Communication: staff will run an outreach campaign to inform residents about the fireworks ban, explain enforcement mechanisms and provide guidance on safe alternatives and official public events.

- Monitoring: fire and public-works staff will continue to monitor conditions and report to council; the city will maintain mitigation work required by the CWS agreement to stay eligible for state cost-sharing in the event of extended-attack fires.