News

LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev. - Conditions and weather permitting, Tahoe Fire & Fuels Team (TFFT) members may continue prescribed fire operations this week at Lake Tahoe. The Nevada Division of Forestry is scheduled to burn hand piles near Incline Village. Smoke will be present. In addition, smoke may still be visible from the USDA Forest Service’s burn operations last week near Baldwin Beach. For current air quality, visit AirNow.

Two areas for burning this week:

LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev. - A joint effort between the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) and the Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) has created an innovative program called BearWise. This aims to help people live more responsibly with bears with guidance from several Lake Tahoe agencies.

This has long been the focus of wildlife advocates around the lake, and BearWise is meant to provide the same consistent messaging regarding bears and how to manage human-bear conflict across state lines and through all Tahoe agencies.

South Lake Tahoe professional skier Kyle Smaine died Sunday after being overtaken by an avalanche in Japan, according to the Mountain Gazette. The 31-year-old had been skiing while on a marketing trip for Ikon Pass and Nagano Tourism when the avalanche occurred Sunday afternoon, Japan local time, the Mountain Gazette said.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county. The following are calls that only pertain to the South and West Shore, including Meyers, South Lake Tahoe, Meeks Bay, Tahoma, and the Echo Summit area. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at the time of the story.

January 19 - January 25, 2023

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07:41 SUSPICIOUS SUBJECT IN PROGRESS - Occurred at Court Dept 11 SLT on Johnson Blvd. in South Lake Tahoe. Disposition: ADVISED.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Ready for the cold and snow to be a thing of the past? That isn't going to happen for a while, and the next winter weather system in the Lake Tahoe forecast shows that.

A quick-moving slider-type winter system is expected to impact the Sierra and western Nevada on Sunday into Sunday night, bringing gusty ridge winds and light snowfall accumulations. On its tail will be some bitterly cold temperatures.

The Placer County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved $4,493,818 for eight capital improvement projects during its January 24 meeting. The Capital Advisory Project Committee (CAP) recommended the projects that will be funded by Tourism Occupancy Tax (TOT) funds.

During this year’s grant cycle, the CAP Committee received 13 project requests totaling $8.1 million. The committee determined three applications did not meet funding criteria and two other projects were supported by the committee but were encouraged to seek other identified funding sources.

Lake Tahoe is one of the most beautiful places on Earth, which naturally leads to a lot of incredible photographs! This winter, the Tahoe Fund will be recognizing some of the best photos and photographers in the Tahoe region through its Winter Photo Contest.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - State Route 89 remains closed around Emerald Bay as crews work to remove vast amounts of snow from the roadway. Caltrans said its South Lake Tahoe area maintenance crew began the arduous task of clearing the snow with blowers, graders, and plows. They said crews encountered slides at multiple locations, one as high as 50 feet and 300 feet long, and six others between 25 and 30 feet tall.

The department is targeting Friday to reopen the highway.

To check road conditions before traveling, visit https://quickmap.dot.ca.gov/.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The South Lake Tahoe City Council will be holding its annual Strategic Planning Retreat on Tuesday, January 31 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the ballroom at the Landing (4104 Lakeshore Blvd).

This is an open, public meeting. Seating will be available for attendees and it will also be live-streamed on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/CityofSLT.

Tahoe Fire & Fuels Team (TFFT) members may continue prescribed fire operations this week at Lake Tahoe as conditions and weather allow. The Nevada Division of Forestry is scheduled to burn hand piles near Incline Village and the USDA Forest Service may continue operations near Baldwin Beach. Smoke will be present. For current air quality, visit AirNow.

Two planned burn areas this week:

1. LTBMU Admin Pile, USDA Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, North of Taylor Creek, and South of Baldwin Beach Road
Burn Type: Log Deck, Total Acreage: 1.00

LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The Sierra State Parks Foundation invites Californians to recognize and celebrate Dr. Helen Henry Smith for her pioneering efforts that saved and preserve Vikingsholm Castle located at Emerald Bay State Park at Lake Tahoe. Dr. Smith was awarded the Golden Bear Award, an annually presented award by the California State Parks and Recreation Commission, highlighting individuals who demonstrate leadership and make significant contributions to the Parks mission.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - A cold front will bring gusty winds from the east, 80-120 mph along the Sierra and Carson Range ridges from Sunday to Monday morning. Starting overnight, winds will increase over the Sierra ridgetops.

A Lake Wind Advisory is in place from 1 p.m. Sunday to 4 a.m. Monday. Expect winds from the east, 15 to 20 mph with gusts up to 35 mph at lake level with waves 1 to 3 feet.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county. The following are calls that only pertain to the South and West Shore, including Meyers, South Lake Tahoe, Meeks Bay, Tahoma, and the Echo Summit area. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at the time of the story.

January 12 - January 18, 2023

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07:05 LOST PROPERTY - Occurred at Heavenly Valley Ski on Saddle Rd. in South Lake Tahoe. Disposition: REPORT TAKEN.

Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced Thursday expanded efforts to reduce wildfire risk across the western U.S., directly affecting national forests in California.

1/20 UPDATE: The El Dorado County Sheriff's Office (EDSO) said the avalanche occurred in El Dorado County in an area known as Rattlesnake, located just outside the resort boundary near the power lines above High Meadows, below Ridge Run and Sky Express.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - After weeks of delayed mail and long hours at the main post office in South Lake Tahoe, change is in the air.

Extra workers from Sacramento have been brought in and the front counter will have extended hours for mail pick-up on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday this week to accommodate customers. A new postmaster to replace the void left through retirement is also coming on board.

LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev. - With several feet of snow on the ground, preparing for wildfire may not be on your winter "to-do" list. But, winter is actually a great time to plan your home hardening retrofits. Home hardening is the process of preparing your home for wildfire embers by addressing its most vulnerable components and retrofitting them with fire-resistant building materials.

Choose an easy retrofit or something grand from this idea list from Living With Fire:

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif - Most Lake Tahoe residents are getting a little weary of endless snow storms, but this is a good news bad news forecast!

First the bad news - there will be periods of moderate to heavy snowfall snow accumulation likely down to western Nevada valley floors as the next storm moves through the region. The storm is starting to track a bit southward so Tahoe-Carson City south to Mono County should get most of the snow.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - It appears there are a couple of more storms on their way to the Sierra, but then there is a light at the end of the tunnel, finally!

The main remaining storm in this series is Monday, with a weaker one Wednesday. Signals at this time show a much less active weather pattern for the rest of January.

There is a chance of 2-4 more inches of snow tonight, then 3-5 inches on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, according to the National Weather Service (NWS) in Reno.

The two-day forecast from NWS Reno:

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The national drought map has looked ominous for some with its dark red colors depicting extreme drought spread throughout California. For more than two years much of the state has been in at least a severe stage of drought, if not extreme.

Just one month ago, 85 percent of the state was in severe drought. Now that number is 46 percent - while there is still some stage of drought, the outlook is much better. There have been ten atmospheric rivers hit the state since the December measurement.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The United States Postal Service (USPS) is having special pick-up dates for mail in South Lake Tahoe this weekend after weeks of delayed mail service.

Severe winter storms in the Tahoe Basin have impacted access to some postal delivery routes in the Tahoe Basin including South Lake Tahoe and Incline Village, causing customers to wait at the post office for over an hour to collect undelivered mail.

On Thursday, California's U.S. Senators Alex Padilla and Dianne Feinstein, along with Representative Jimmy Panetta, Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, and Representatives Kevin Kiley, Salud Carbajal, Adam Schiff, and Brad Sherman led a bipartisan letter with 42 other California Members of Congress urging President Joe Biden to grant the State of California’s request for a major disaster declaration in response to recent severe weather.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The U.S. Post Office in South Lake Tahoe has had many challenges in getting the mail out for the last month - few postal carriers meeting increasing demand with more home delivery customers and an ever-growing number of online package delivery. Oh, and toss in an epic storm with heavy snowfall and two-wheel-drive postal vehicles, and you get the idea.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Those watching the roads around Lake Tahoe during storms will often see a California Highway Patrol (CHP) incident where a "big rig" is stuck going around Emerald Bay on SR-89.

During normal conditions, a truck and attached trailer have a difficult time making the switchbacks just south of Emerald Point but add snow and the situation is dangerous.

The highway around Emerald Bay has been closed during the most recent storms, yet two large trucks have had to be towed after being stuck at the switchbacks just before the road closure gate.