Lovell Canyon fire fully contained

The Lovell Canyon fire was fully contained by Wednesday evening, according to the U.S. Forest Service.

The fire began on Sunday in Lovell Canyon, on the southwest side of the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest’s Spring Mountains National Recreation Area. The fire’s spread was aided by winds and heat.

“The Lovell fire burned a total of 445 acres,” said Brent VanGundy, incident commander trainee. “Many of the resources have been released from the fire but some crews will remain on site to mop up, putting out any hot spots that still remain within the fire’s interior.”

Lovell Canyon Road, nearly 20 miles outside Pahrump, was reopened to traffic Tuesday afternoon. No structures were damaged by the fire. The cause of the Lovell fire is still under investigation.

Though the Lovell fire mostly affected U.S. Forest Service lands, a number of cooperating agencies helped during suppression efforts, including the Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service, Clark County, Nevada Division of Forestry and the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department all lent their support to the fire-fighting effort. Nearly 150 firefighters were working the blaze at its height.

In addition, on Tuesday evening a storm event occurred over Las Vegas. Lightning strikes started 11 small fires in Southern Nevada. Nine of the fires have been contained and controlled. Firefighters are taking action on two of the remaining fires this morning.

The Forest Service continues to ask for the public’s help in preventing wildfires during this time of high fire danger. Please extinguish campfires completely, and do not target shoot near dry vegetation. Avoid operating vehicles or other motorized equipment near grass, as their sparks can ignite fires.

All types of fireworks are illegal on federal lands.