Early morning fire in South Lake Tahoe burns almost 3 acres

10:30 a.m. update: The Ralph Fire, burning in the Heavenly Creek/Powerline Trail area above Ralph Drive in South Lake Tahoe, is now 60 percent contained.

Firefighters are now in mop-up mode and full containment is expected shortly according to the U.S. Forest Service.

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The fourth fire to burn around South Lake Tahoe this week burned almost three acres early Friday morning in heavy brush on a steep slope above Pioneer Trail.

CalFire, the U.S. Forest Service and South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue all responded to the 1:30 a.m. fire above Ralph Drive. They are now working on getting the hose line around the area.

Several citizens called 911 to report the early morning fire. Homes are not threatened as it burned upslope, away from the neighborhood. As of 9:00 a.m. Friday, the fire is 15 percent contained according to Lisa Heron of the U.S. Forest Service.

On Monday and Tuesday, there were small fires at both South Tahoe High and under the Heavenly Gondola, both of which citizens nearby were able to cut down before firefighters arrived. At the school, three teachers with fire extinguishers ran down the hill to get the fire out, and at Heavenly Gondola, passerby with shovels were able to get flames out. On Wednesday as 2:48 a.m. there was another fire on Pine Hill Road near the Tahoe Tyrol complex.

SLT Fire Chief Jeff Meston said it's hard to discover the cause of fires at night because they can't protect the scene as well as they can during daylight hours.

The fires are considered suspicious as no natural causes such as lightning have recently been seen in the Lake Tahoe area. The causes are under investigation.