Posted on 06/27/2007 6:07:59 AM PDT by I'll be your Huckleberry
Resurgent Tahoe fire ignites chaos, panic
By John Simerman, MEDIANEWS STAFF Article Last Updated: 06/27/2007 04:27:24 AM PDT
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE — Firefighters battling the northernmost edge of the Angora fire ravaging the South Lake Tahoe area lost control of a back burn Tuesday afternoon, which jumped over Highway 89 and forced evacuations of several neighborhoods.
The Tahoe Basin's worst fire in a century bolted northeast into a subdivision about sixmiles southwest of the Stateline casinos, within a mile of the lake itself, sparking evacuations of a popular village and an enclave of pricey, waterfront homes. The marching flames ignited a scene of chaos as panicked residents waded through smoke while rushing home to meet loved ones, retrieve precious items or rescue pets.
"Everybody standing here right now better have a car and an escape plan, "a fire official shouted from the middle of an intersection as cars and people rushed by.
The setback came on the eve of winds forecast to gust up to 30 mph today.
The fire jumped a barrier created to prevent the flames from spreading from four smaller fires when a tree exploded, sending embers that sparked the flare-up.
Two firefighters had to deploy their emergency shelters to escape the suddenly advancing flames, which also forced the evacuation of about 98 Contra Costa youths at Camp Concord, who headed back by bus to the Concord Civic Center.
Hundreds of residents along Tahoe Keys Drive were forced to fight or flee the fire, and fleeing became difficult as cars and trucks jammed Tahoe Keys Drive. "It's a fairly populated area," said Tim Evans, a spokesman for the U.S. Forest Service. "That certainly is not good news for our firefighting efforts here."
Some of the people along the road were frantically loading up cars, trucks and motorcycles at 4 p.m. after the fire broke free an hour earlier.
"We're doing this ourselves. I'm not going to wait around" for an evacuation order, said Drew Norton, 20, as he loaded goods on his motorcycle. Police officers were circulating through the neighborhood but did not seem to be ordering people to leave.
It was firefighters' first significant setback in two days, which came as authorities were allowing people to return to lesser-damaged areas.
The problem began just after 3 p.m. as firefighters were conducting a back burn, north down Gardner Mountain that grew beyond their control, said U.S. Forest Service spokesman Tom Efird. Back burns are controlled burns used to eliminate fire fuel.
The fire spread a quarter- to a half-mile beyond the original containment line, pushing it back to the east of Highway 89.
As the wind picked up, it sent the back burn swooping down on two of a group of firefighters working to protect Tallac Village, said Chuck Dickson, a U.S. Forest Service spokesman.
The pair were forced to deploy the emergency shelters that firefighters carry to protect themselves during burnovers as a last resort, Dickson said. They were uninjured, he said.
Firefighters now are more worried about northeasterly gusts of up to 30 mph forecast for Wednesday which now could endanger more residential areas and historic recreation sites toward Camp Richardson. The spread could set back the containment date of July 1. "We thought we were going to have a full day of preparation and were actively fighting fire," Efird said. "We don't
Panicked residents of South Lake Tahoe run for safety as fire approaches their home Tuesday afternoon. (Wally Skalij - Los Angeles Times) call that a setback, that's just part of the game." We have four days of bad weather conditions coming," said Rich Hawkins, incident commander for U.S. Forest Service. "I can't promise you we'll control the fire during the next four days just because the winds are going to work against us."
Camp Concord, administered by Concord's parks and recreation department, operates in the Sierras between Lake Tahoe and Fallen Leaf Lake on 29 acres of the El Dorado National Forest. Participants had been camping about a half mile from the south shore of the lake, at least two miles away from the fires. Up until 3 p.m. Tuesday, activities went on as usual, said spokeswoman Leslye Asera.
"Then the fire broke through the fire line, so forest services suggested that neighborhoods in the path be evacuated.
"We agree," she added. "'Better safe than sorry.'" Traffic was at a standstill as residents voluntarily evacuated in droves from Tahoe Keys, which is between Venice Drive and the lake at the far reaches of the threat area.
Mandatory evacuations were under way near 15th and 13th streets and Venice Drive and the Gardner Mountain area, said Laurel Owen of the U.S. Forest Service.
Several helicopters and airplanes were battling the blaze where it jumped Highway 89, with the choppers drawing water from Lake Tahoe and Fallen Leaf Lake. Many residents were on their rooftops hosing down houses as a dark orange cloud began roiling over what had been a clear blue sky.
Some people in the Tahoe Keys and Camp Richardson area said they were second- and third-time evacuees who had fled the fire from earlier positions.
"We are getting better at it," said second-time evacuee Dan Ott.
A long line of cars was nearly at a standstill on Tahoe Keys Drive.
The fire has consumed more than 2,700 acres of forest studded with homes and vacation cabins. It has taken 200 homes and 75 commercial buildings, according to the California Department of Forest and Fire Protection.
About 1,900 firefighters were on the lines along with 11 helicopters battling the blaze Tuesday. A strike team of 21 firefighters from Contra Costa, Alameda and Santa Clara counties were fighting the flames along Highway 89 when the blaze jumped the road, said Contra Costa fire Capt. Dave George. They had departed for the fire line 24 hours before.
"Their comments was, today was a very interesting day," said George, who talked with the team after they came off of the fire line after a 12-hour shift. Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons, who toured the area Monday, said fire officials estimated the cost of fighting the blaze at $35 million to $50 million, and the overall damage at more than $100 million. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is expected to tour the damage today.
Thanks for that run down on the area, I know what you’re saying.
As a teenager I worked in a cafe as a dishwasher on the North Shore in the summer of ‘57. Got to know some year round residents and what a place to live it was then.
My wife’s folks lived in Carson City in the 70’ and 80’s and had friends that lived a little north of So Lake Tahoe. A huge change took place in those years and not for the good.
Crisis on our National Forests: Reducing the Threat of Catastrophic Wildfire [San Bernardino Fires]
Time to repost an oldie but a goody, lest we forget who's principally responsible for this mess.
Sierra Club Conservation Policies
Fire Management on Public Lands - Conservation Policies
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Do you want this,
Or this
This is Apache land. The two photos were taken the same day and both burned. Note the charring on the lower branches of some of the trees in the second photo foreground.
The answer is forestry, multiple use, and the responsibility that goes with private control. The Forest Service serves too many masters, and gets a bigger budget as long as they fail.
Thanks.
Time to repost an oldie but a goody, lest we forget who’s principally responsible for this mess.
Sierra Club
This is what Grand County, Vail in Eagle County, Summit County... look like now.
Just waiting for a spark.
They have many homes at risk.
Spindly, twisted, crappy trees packed so close together it produces a monoculture, dries up streams, and eventually destroys watersheds.
Yup. That's the policy. Eight years of Bush has done NOTHING to make it any better.
Thanks for those reposts.
Too many people forget about what damage these Eco terrorists have done in the past two decades with their love of fire.
And many historic roads have been closed and many more miles are proposed to be closed by BLM and USFS under this current president.
As we know, this will make fire response slower and much more dangerous for the fire fighters.
You might want to read that article on the Winter Fire. Wildland firefighters ain't what they used to be.
Jeez. I understand what you mean, but what the heck kind of country have we become that "I’m sure they’ll be coming after him.' is not a surprising response? We've started to sound like Nazi Germany or Russia.
bttt
We get metrosexuals in parts of Arizona. We used to be able to spray for them, but chlordane has now been banned also.
Evacuation orders remain in effect for two neighborhoods in a south Lake Tahoe community because after the wildfire that has burned 3,100 acres jumped Highway 89 Tuesday afternoon.
Gov. Schwarzenegger and Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons will tour the fire-stricken region today. A news conference is scheduled for noon. News10 will air it live. It will be streamed live on news10.net.
In the Gardner Mountain area, about 400 residents from the following streets are now under a voluntary evacuation order:
13th Street
Gardner Street
Taylor Way
Panther Street
Julie Lane
Clement Street
Roger Avenue
Shady Lane
Tata Lane
Highway 89 is closed between Highway 50 and Emerald Bay.
Tallac Village is located near South Lake Tahoe, where the fire has already damaged or destroyed an estimated 200 homes and 75 other structures.
What had been just a thin line of hazy white smoke turned dark and dense as the fire flared up a little after 2 p.m. Tuesday. The blaze jumped the fire line not far from where the three-day old fire began, near the south end of the lake. Tuesday evening the National Weather Service issued a Red Flag Warning for the Tahoe area through 9 p.m. Wednesday and extended a fire weather watch through Thursday night.
In the Tahoe Keys area, people on West Way and Lukins Way have been told to leave. Venice Drive and 15th Street are under voluntary evacuation, as is the Camp Richardson area.
One woman who hastily loaded her SUV only had time to say “Pray for us” as she fled.
As a precaution, Barton Memorial Hospital in South Lake Tahoe moved residents from their skilled nursing facility to other Nevada facilities. The hospital is not under an evacuation order. The nursing home patient transfer is precautionary
June 27, 2007
Update 8:47 a.m.: Another evacuation center opens
A third American Red Cross evacuation shelter has been set up at Incline High School, 499 Village Blvd. The other shelters are at Carson High School, 1111 N. Saliman Road and at the Lake Tahoe Recreation Center, phone: (530) 542-1556. Call the Red Cross at (775) 856-1000.
A hotline has been set up for residents to find out if they can return to their homes. Call (530) 621-5866. The last report from the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Department hotline is that mandatory evacuations remain in effect for those living in the Gardner Mountain subdivisions from Lake Tahoe Boulevard north to Gardner Street including Highway 89; Highway 89 from 15th St. north; and Upper Truckee Road from Wintoon north and Lake Tahoe Boulevard. Voluntary evacuations include: Tahoe Island, Highway 50 north to 15th street and east of Highway 89 and Tahoe Keys area.
*****
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Although stronger winds today are expected to cause problems for firefighters battling the Angora wildfire near South Lake Tahoe, Stanford University officials say that the university’s campground near Fallen Leaf Lake appears safe.
The Stanford Sierra Camp was evacuated after the fire broke out nearby Sunday afternoon. People who had been at the camp were evacuated, while a small group of staff stayed to protect the camp from fire danger. The staff members were to take motorboats out onto Fallen Leaf Lake if the fire veered back toward the camp again.
The road to the camp is still closed, according to Amy Paulson, senior director of business and membership for the Stanford Alumni Association. Power and telephone service to the camp were restored Tuesday morning.
The Angora fire has burnt 3,100 acres as of this morning, destroying 178 homes and 50 other buildings. The blaze is 45 percent contained. Fire officials hope for complete containment by Sunday.
Fire officials have changed the contained date to July 3rd,
as of the latest briefing.
You’re spot-on with your figures.
What people must, simply must, remember about “defensible space” is that the flame front of a wind-whipped fire needs a firebreak at least twice as wide as the flames are high.
So if you have trees around your home — you need a heck of a space. 100’ is a good start.
I’m sure people will be trying to sue the TRPA and so on. I’m also sure that since they’re in Kahl-ee-fornia, they won’t win.
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