Utah wildfire prompts mandatory evacuations

A wildfire in Salt Lake City forced people living uphill from Utah's state capitol to evacuate, and it remained uncontained Sunday as more than 100 firefighters worked to protect nearby homes.

Helicopters and airplanes were dropping buckets over the flames as ground crews tried to contain the fire on Ensign Peak. Firefighters were working to save homes about 1.2 miles (1.9 kilometers) up East Capitol Boulevard, and evacuees were offered a space in the capitol complex where they could escape the heat.

"With the heat, as well as the wind direction and just the temperatures out here and the fuel moisture, it's kind of a recipe that we could have a quickly running fire," Division Chief Bob Silverthorne of the Salt Lake City Fire Department said at a Saturday news briefing.