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High Point fire a strange social event, with lawn chairs and street gatherings By
Jonas Manuel
Spectators parked near the U.S. Forest Service Logan Ranger District Headquarters on U.S. 89 observe the light show on the mountain as the High Point fire burns Friday night. / Photo by Jonas Manuel Like snow in the winter, ashes collided into the windshields of cars dashing to witness the blazing fire on the mountain in Logan Canyon. "It was like nothing I'd ever seen before," said Chris Johnnie, of west Logan. "I had seen things like this many of times on television but never before in real life." Johnnie saw the flames from a distance and went to investigate with a friend. The fire began at the base of the mountain around 1 p.m. Friday. By nighttime the fire spread and covered the face of the mountain like a fiery blanket. Flames hovered several feet into the sky as trees burnt to the ground. Hundreds of people packing cameras and camcorders raced to view the fire. "It was exciting to see but also shocking," said Johnnie. Johnnie also said that he was more amazed at the many people who came to see the fire. "There were people whose homes were dang near that fire and they were out there with lawn chairs and everything," said Johnnie. "The parks were also filled with people." The neighborhoods near the base of the mountain became so congested with people that Logan police officers had to shield off roads and streets leading closer to the fire. Other police officers drove around speaking through the car microphone inviting people who weren't from those neighborhoods to leave. Johnnie said the he had been hiking on several of the trails that were damaged by the fire and was sad the he and his friends were not going to be able to share those experiences again in the same way that they had experienced them before. Logan Canyon is widely known for its hiking trails, including the two- to three-hour hike to the canyon's famous and ancient Jardine juniper tree. Although that trail was not affected by the fire, the Wind Cave trail was closed to the public from Friday through Tuesday so firefighters could use if for quick access to the top of the canyon. Helicopter and airplanes had been battling the fire since Friday and are making progress to controlling it.
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