# Machine Gun Fire > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Machine_Gun_Fire > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Machine_Gun_Fire.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Machine_Gun_Fire > Source revision: 1300240682 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) {{short description|2010 wildfire in Herriman, Utah}} {{Use American English|date=May 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=February 2025}} {{Infobox wildfire | title =Machine Gun Fire | image = | caption = | cost = | injuries = | fatalities = | reference ={{cite news|title=National Guard: 'We shot in the face of a red flag warning'|url=http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=12508885|accessdate=30 August 2016|agency=[KSL-TV](/source/KSL-TV)}} | date = {{Start date|2010|9|19}} – {{End date|2010|9|26}}--> | location = [Herriman, Utah](/source/Herriman%2C_Utah), US | coordinates = {{coord|40|25|41|N|112|4|56|W|display=inline,title}} | pushpin_map = Utah | pushpin_map_caption = Location of fire within Utah. | area = {{Convert|4,351|acre|km2|0}} | buildings = | cause =[National Guard](/source/National_Guard_of_the_United_States) target practice | landuse = | motive = Accidental }} The '''Machine Gun Fire''' or '''Camp Williams Fire''' was a 2010 [wildfire](/source/wildfire) in [Herriman, Utah](/source/Herriman%2C_Utah), United States. It was started by a mistake at a firing range by [National Guard troops](/source/National_Guard_of_the_United_States) on a training exercise. 4,351 acres burned, approximately 1600 homes were evacuated, and three homes were destroyed. ==Origin== Live fire [50 caliber machine gun](/source/M2_Browning_machine_gun) training had been scheduled at [Camp Williams](/source/Camp_W._G._Williams) for the afternoon of Sunday, 19 September 2010. As is common in the area during the late summer, the east winds off of the [Wasatch Mountains](/source/Wasatch_Range) picked up in the afternoon. On the previous Thursday afternoon, the [National Weather Service](/source/National_Weather_Service) issued a [Fire Weather Watch](/source/Red_flag_warning) for Saturday and Sunday. On Friday afternoon, it upgraded the alert to a [Red Flag Warning](/source/Red_flag_warning) for the entire weekend.[http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=12508885 "National Guard: 'We shot in the face of a Red Flag Warning'"] ''KSL Broadcasting'' Salt Lake City, Utah, 20 September 2010, archived [http://www.freezepage.com/1285081990EQYSBMAZSV?url=http://www.ksl.com/?nid%3D148%26sid%3D12508885 here] at Freezepage Despite the dry conditions and base protocols that interdicted live-fire training during Red Flag conditions, a unit of the [Utah National Guard](/source/Utah_National_Guard) commenced the live-fire exercise, although no highly flammable tracer rounds were used.This was the fifth fire in fifteen years to escape the base, and each year numerous ones are extinguished by base fire-fighters. Smart, Christopher (20 September 2010) [http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/home/50319215-76/fire-camp-williams-herriman.html.csp "Machine Gun Fire not the first at Camp Williams"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100923120920/http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/home/50319215-76/fire-camp-williams-herriman.html.csp |date=2010-09-23 }} ''Salt Lake City Tribune'' Shrapnel ignited the brush.Smart, Christopher (20 September 2010; modified 17 February 2011) [http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/home/50319215-76/fire-camp-williams-herriman.html.csp "Machine Gun Fire not the first at Camp Williams"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100923120920/http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/home/50319215-76/fire-camp-williams-herriman.html.csp |date=2010-09-23 }} ''Salt Lake City Tribune''; archived [https://web.archive.org/web/20100923120920/http://www.sltrib.com/sltrib/home/50319215-76/fire-camp-williams-herriman.html.csp here] by [WebCite](/source/WebCite) The [Utah National Guard](/source/Utah_National_Guard) admitted full responsibility.{{Cite news|title=Utah's National Guard chief takes blame for fire |date=20 September 2010 |publisher=NBC News |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna39265584 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210115185503/https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna39265584 |archive-date=15 January 2021 |url-status=live }}{{cite news| title=Herriman fire 50 percent contained, all evacuation orders lifted | publisher=Fox 13 News, Utah| date=22 September 2010 | url=http://www.fox13now.com/news/local/kstu-fire-burns-in-herriman,0,1590461.story | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100923085432/http://www.fox13now.com/news/local/kstu-fire-burns-in-herriman,0,1590461.story | archive-date=23 September 2010 | url-status=dead}} ==Suppression== After the fire was noted on the [Camp Williams](/source/Camp_Williams) Machine Gun Firing Range, on Sunday afternoon, [fire crews](/source/Firefighter) from the camp with the assistance of two [Black Hawk helicopters](/source/Sikorsky_UH-60_Black_Hawk) attempted unsuccessfully to put out the blaze, and the fire, whipped by dry winds, burned northwestward across Oak Springs Hollow. [Camp Williams](/source/Camp_Williams) firefighters notified the [Utah Unified Fire Authority](/source/Unified_Fire_Authority_(Utah))''Unified Fire Authority is Utah’s largest fire agency, serving over 375,000 residents in the cities of Alta, Cottonwood Heights, Draper, Herriman, Holladay, Riverton, Taylorsville and the unincorporated areas of Sait Lake County.'' [http://www.unifiedfire.org/ "Unified Fire Authority"] who mobilized local fire agencies. However the fire crossed Shep's Ridge, and continued on to burn some houses on the edge of Herriman. The fire had burned over 4,351 acres and was fully contained by 24 September 2010. The [Federal Emergency Management Agency](/source/Federal_Emergency_Management_Agency) (FEMA) authorized the use of federal funds in paying the costs of fighting the fire. FEMA approved the Fire Management Assistance Grant under a statute which provides reimbursement of up to 75 percent of the state's qualifying fire fighting costs.[https://archive.today/20110605002306/http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=52734 "FEMA Authorizes Funds To Help Fight Machine Gun Fire In Salt Lake County"] Release Number: R8-10-013, Federal Emergency Management Agency, 19 September 2010; archived [https://archive.today/20110605002306/http://www.fema.gov/news/newsrelease.fema?id=52734 here] by [WebCite](/source/WebCite) Evacuations continued into Tuesday September 21, 2010, although the number of homes under evacuation orders lessened to 450. The same day, it was announced that the fire was 50 percent contained. Several residents were allowed back to their homes.[http://www.fox13now.com/news/local/kstu-fire-burns-in-herriman,0,1590461.story Herriman Fire 50 percent contained, evacuations still remain in effect] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110711024931/http://www.fox13now.com/news/local/kstu-fire-burns-in-herriman,0,1590461.story |date=2011-07-11 }} ''Fox 13'' Salt Lake City, Utah. ==Aftermath== Although the National Guard quickly set up a claims center for residents whose homes or property were damaged, More than a year later many of the claims had not been addressed, and compensation was generally regarded as insufficient. This generated law suits against the Army and the National Guard.{{Cite news|last=Orellana |first=Roxana |date=15 December 2011 |title=Herriman fire victims sue federal government and Guard |newspaper=The Salt Lake City Tribune |url=https://archive.sltrib.com/article.php?id=53118050&itype=CMSID |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250421192125/https://archive.sltrib.com/article.php?id=53118050&itype=CMSID |archive-date=21 April 2025 |url-status=live }}{{Cite news|last=Romboy |first=Dennis |title=Family whose house burned down in Herriman fire sues Utah National Guard |date=15 December 2011 |newspaper=Deseret News |url=https://www.deseret.com/2011/12/16/20390552/family-whose-house-burned-down-in-herriman-fire-sues-utah-national-guard/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250421191438/https://www.deseret.com/2011/12/16/20390552/family-whose-house-burned-down-in-herriman-fire-sues-utah-national-guard/ |archive-date=21 April 2025 |url-status=live }} Subsequent suits included those by insurance companies,{{Cite news|last=Romboy |first=Dennis |date=18 September 2013 |title=Insurance companies sue Army over 2010 Machine Gun Fire in Herriman |newspaper=Deseret News |url=https://www.deseret.com/2013/9/18/20525956/insurance-companies-sue-army-over-2010-machine-gun-fire-in-herriman/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240726220119/https://www.deseret.com/2013/9/18/20525956/insurance-companies-sue-army-over-2010-machine-gun-fire-in-herriman/ |archive-date=26 July 2024 |url-status=live }} and claims by the county for fire suppression costs.{{Cite news|last=Page |first=Jared |date=22 September 2011 |title= Salt Lake County asks National Guard to cover cost of Herriman fire |newspaper=Deseret News |url=https://www.deseret.com/2011/9/22/20387732/salt-lake-county-asks-national-guard-to-cover-cost-of-herriman-fire/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250421192129/https://www.deseret.com/2011/9/22/20387732/salt-lake-county-asks-national-guard-to-cover-cost-of-herriman-fire/ |archive-date=21 April 2025 |url-status=live }} As late as 2014 landowners sued the Army over damages to their property including emotional distress, based in part on the inadequacies of federal relief.{{Cite news|last=Morgan |first=Emiley |date=4 March 2014 |title=Five sue National Guard over 2010 Herriman fire |newspaper=Deseret News |url=https://www.deseret.com/2014/3/4/20536669/five-sue-national-guard-over-2010-herriman-fire/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240726195239/https://www.deseret.com/2014/3/4/20536669/five-sue-national-guard-over-2010-herriman-fire/ |archive-date=26 July 2024 |url-status=live }} In 2020 a detailed analysis of the fire was published.{{Cite book|last1=Frost |first1=Scott M. |last2=Jenkins |first2=Michael |last3=Alexander |first3=Martin E. |year=2020 |chapter=Wildfire behavior case study of the 2010 Machine Gun Fire, Army Garrison Camp Williams |editor-last1=Hood |editor-first1=Sharon M. |editor-last2=Drury |editor-first2=Stacy |editor-last3=Steelman |editor-first3=Toddi |editor-last4=Steffens |editor-first4=Ron |title=Proceedings of the Fire Continuum: Preparing for the future of wildland fire; 2018 May 21-24; Missoula, MT |series=Proceedings RMRS-P-78 |location=Fort Collins, Colorado |publisher=U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station |pages=267–271 }} The fire was selected because of "its large size and destructive nature in relation to the wildland urban-interface area".{{Cite web|title=Wildfire behavior case study of the 2010 Machine Gun Fire, Army Garrison Camp Williams |date=2020 |publisher=Department of Forest Rangeland, and Fire Sciences, University of Idaho College of Natural Resources |url=https://www.frames.gov/catalog/62103 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201018163812/https://www.frames.gov/catalog/62103 |archive-date=18 October 2020 |url-status=live }} ==Notes== {{Reflist}} ==External links== * [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hf1pVyf-8LA "Blaze Rage: Witness videos of 'Machine Gun' Fire in Herriman, Utah "] YouTube video * [https://web.archive.org/web/20101215143744/http://www.herriman.org/news/docs/CheckedAreas2.pdf "Mandatory Evacuation Area - Camp Williams Fire - 20 September 2010"] City of Herriman Category:History of Salt Lake County, Utah Category:Wildfires in Utah Category:2010 wildfires in the United States Category:2010 in Utah Category:Military in Utah --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Machine Gun Fire](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Machine_Gun_Fire) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Machine_Gun_Fire?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.