With Church-owned property and homes damaged or destroyed by the over 60,000 acre fire, the whole LDS community in Brian Head has been impacted by the fire.
Norma Stapley has lived in the tiny southern Utah town of Summit for more than six decades. There’s not a lot that happens here that she hasn’t seen before.
But the massive Brian Head Fire — which has burned more than 60,000 acres across Southern Utah — marked a frightening first for Stapley and her neighbors.
“We’ve never seen anything like this before,” said the 80-year-old Primary teacher.
Over the past couple of weeks, Stapley has kept a wary eye on the smoke lingering above her community while maintaining close contact with friends in fire-vulnerable neighborhoods in the region.