SLT Fire Rescue crew working the over 33,000 acre Ferguson Fire

Four firefighter/paramedics from South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue are part of the 3,000 firefighting personnel at the Ferguson Fire burning northeast of Mariposa in Western Yosemite. This is the fire responsible for sending smoke into the Lake Tahoe basin for a week.

One engine with Captain Tyler Jack, Engineers Kevin Van Kirk and Mike Taormina and Firefighter Danny Vallejo left the South Shore nine days ago for a 14-day assignment at the fire.

They are joined by crews from Fallen Leaf Fire Department, Northstar Fire and North Tahoe Fire Protection District.

The Ferguson Fire, which started on the evening of July 13 has consumed 33,743 acres and is now 13 percent contained. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

SLT crews are on Henness Ridge above Yosemite West today, performing burning operations to hold the ridge. Evening down slopes, combined with a change in humidity are beneficial to firefighters.

The extinguishment goal, or box fire officials drawn around the potential burn area, is 70-80k acres.

"I think it will be burning for awhile," said SLT Fire Chief Jeff Meston.

North of the Merced River, the fire is burning on the Stanislaus National Forest and fire managers are using a mix of heavy equipment and hand crews to improve roads and build lines in the Montgomery Gulch area. Line construction is progressing east toward Eagle Peak and Buena Vista. To the south, the fire continues to burn in the Chowchilla Mountain area and indirect-line construction is moving forward to protect Wawona and Yosemite National Park. Aerial firefighting resources including a pair of DC-10 tanker planes and a fleet of helicopters have been utilized to slow the fire’s spread.

Along the western edge, firefighters have had great success protecting structures in Jerseydale and are mopping up areas on the edge of the fire to ensure the fire remains within containment lines. Strategic firing operations along the Sweetwater drainage are complete and have provided even more protection for communities to the west.

Weather forecasts are calling for hotter and drier air throughout the week as conditions align for critical and extreme fire weather in the coming days.