I-15 reopens in central Utah after dust storm

A portion of Interstate 15 in Millard County was closed for hours Tuesday because strong winds kicked up a lot of dust in an area ravaged by wildfires.

As winds whip up across the region, the Utah Highway Patrol warned that more closures could be coming until vegetation replaces what's been burned.

The UHP said I-15 was closed near Kanosh, the site of the enormous Milford Flat wildfire that destroyed hundreds of thousands of acres of land.

Emergency dispatchers in Millard County said there were no accidents or injuries as a result of the dust storm. The area has been plagued with dust storms ever since the summer's biggest wildfire, which torched approximately 363,000 acres.

The Milford Flat fire, which started in July, was the largest wildfire in state history. Two people were killed in a crash when the fire first started, as flames raced dangerously close to I-15. A month later, a freeway pile-up killed two others.

"We have had to shut it down several times when we have had high winds causing those dust storms," Roden said.

The area is undergoing re-seeding operations to replace the vegetation that burned. In the meantime, freeway closures could become a regular occurrence, especially as winter storms move over the area.

"It may cause more work for the snowplows if we get a lot more snow drifting across the roadways," Roden said.

---

E-mail: bwinslow@desnews.com