San Juan County declares state of emergency as Babylon and Horsehead wildfires grow; fairgrounds opened for incident management spike camp

The San Juan County Commission on a voice vote ratified a state of emergency after a June 26–27 wildfire outbreak that included the Babylon Fire and the Horsehead Fire, authorizing emergency funds, activation of mutual‑aid agreements and requests for state assistance.

Tammy Gallegos, introduced as a county emergency staff member, read the declaration into the record, saying the fires and extreme weather "have threatened public and private property, transportation corridors, utilities, critical infrastructure, natural resources, and the health and safety of residents and visitors throughout San Juan County." The document states emergency operations are active and that response costs exceed county resources.

The declaration cited extreme drought, red‑flag warnings, critically low relative humidity and high winds that have heightened the risk of rapid wildfire growth. Chair Lori Mon and commissioners asked staff to adjust wording in the declaration to reflect the board’s role, then approved the ratification and agreed to reissue the declaration with signatures.

As part of the operational response, the commission approved a land‑use agreement to allow a critical incident management team to establish a spike camp at the San Juan County fairgrounds. Tammy Gallegos told the board the camp was requested because resources escalated quickly — from an initial 150 personnel to over 1,000 on scene — and the fairgrounds provided a site close enough to staging areas while avoiding disruption to schools. The agreement includes a reimbursement provision the staff estimated at about $350 per day for county facility use; Gallegos said the incident management team is largely self‑sustaining and will bring catering and other support services.

The commission also heard that Michelle Miller, introduced as a state liaison from the Utah Division of Emergency Management, is coordinating state resources with county response efforts. Commissioners and staff signaled continued coordination with federal, state and volunteer partners and warned the public to follow zone notifications and official alerts.

The commission closed the public portion of the meeting and moved to executive session later in the agenda to discuss pending or imminent litigation related to county business. The public‑record actions taken during the meeting included the emergency declaration ratification and approval of the fairgrounds land‑use agreement; staff said they would resend the corrected declaration for signatures and continue to provide incident updates.

The county indicated it would pursue federal and state assistance and activate mutual‑aid agreements as needed; no additional policy changes were adopted at the meeting.