evacuation

9:30 a.m. update 6/26: Firefighters have gained some control of the Marina Fire burning near Mono Lake and the town of Lee Vining. The 758 acre fire is 30 percent contained.

Highway 395 is closed at the town of Lee Vining on the south at the turnoff for Hawthorne, NV (Highway 167) on the north. However, California Highway Patrol is conducting one-way traffic escorts as conditions allow. Mono County Sheriff and Caltrans District 9 have worked tirelessly with CHP to implement this escort.

The hot, dry days of summer will soon be upon us. Preparing your home for wildfire is more important than ever. And now is a good time to get started. June is “Wildfire Awareness Month” in the Lake Tahoe Basin, and members of the Tahoe Fire and Fuels Team are asking all Tahoe residents and visitors to “Think First to Keep Tahoe Fire Safe”

The fourth session of the South Lake Tahoe Fire Department’s South Tahoe Action Team (STAT) graduated during today’s City Council meeting.

A fire in the air handling unit at Montbleu Resort in South Lake Tahoe forced the evacuation of all casino and convention center patrons on Friday evening.

According to Eric Guevin, Fire Marshal for the Tahoe Douglas Fire Protection District, the motor of the air handling unit caught on fire, forcing smoke into the hallway between the convention center and the casino floor.

One ambulance and fire engine from South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue responded along with four engines from Tahoe Douglas.

Thursday will start off with a reverse 911 call for 270 South Lake Tahoe residents living in the Highland Woods neighborhood.

The neighborhood evacuation drill will take place from 10 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. to test the city's emergency system. All visiting or living in the Highland Woods area that wish to participate will be evacuated to the end of Sierra Blvd at the snow dump area. A public information officer will be there along with the Red Cross and informational booths and displays. Snacks will be provided.

6:47 p.m. - Cal Fire says containment on the Butte Fire has grown to 47 percent, with acreage burned holding at 71,780 acres.

Damage assessment shows 233 residences, 175 outbuildings and 15 other structures burned in the fire, with 6,000 additional structures still threatened.

Officials ask that area residents remain vigilant, as the fire is still active in many areas. They also ask for people to assist by calling the appropriate authorities for specific situations:

If you see trees on a highway, please call Cal-Trans at 209-948-7543.

8 p.m. update 8/18/15:

The Walker Fire has now burned 3,715 acres and is now 35% contained. It has been determined that the fire is human caused and is under investigation.

There are 484 firefighters working on the fire along with 4 helicopters, 2 Air tankers, 34 Engines, 10 Crews, 6 Water Tenders, and 4 Dozers.

235 structures remain threatened but none have burned so far.

The Kyburz Fire is burning about 25 miles west of South Lake Tahoe. It has burned both sides of Highway 50 near and around the American River. It started on Highway 50 near Whitehall.

10 a.m. update 7/27/15:

The Sand Flat Campground has reopened as firefighters can almost total control of the fire lines. They now have 98% of the fire contained.

An updated infrared look at the scene has again reduced the amount burned to 75 acres.

They will not be updating the fire command website after Tuesday as they transfer o a forest Type 4 organization.

7:15 p.m. update:

The storm passed through and the concert is back on.

Original Story

The 6,000 people attending the Reggae Festival at the Hard Rock Lake Tahoe are being evacuated because of lightning in the area.

Several strikes of lightning in the South Lake Tahoe area Saturday evening prompted the necessity to get the people out according to Tahoe Douglas Fire Marshal Eric Guevin. He was expecting the open the venue back up as soon as safe. As of 6:45 p.m. Saturday, the lightening was in the ridge about Glenbrook.

1:35 p.m. update on 6/23/15

The fire figures were updated this afternoon. At 8 a.m. they report almost 16,000 acres, then downsized a bit at noon to 13,562 after analyzing infrared reports. The 1:35 p.m. update is as follows:

The Washington Fire is actively burning. It is spreading due to both fuel-and-slope-driven forces and in some some drainages off of the East Fork Carson River. It has also spread to the north and to the east.

Fire is burning in hazardous and inaccessible terrain and approaching an increasing number of structures and impacting travel corridors.

Winds hampered firefighting efforts at the lightening caused Saddle Fire on Saturday. As of 6 p.m., the fire has burned 1,480 acres in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest, halfway between Redding and Eureka, California.

866 personnel are fighting the fire which is now 15% contained.

Firefighters have been protecting the homes along County Road 311, and as of June 13, no structures have been burned.

Challenges to firefighters include a heavy component of dead and down vegetation (from previous fires), hot, dry conditions, steep terrain, and ongoing drought.

The Tahoe Douglas Fire District and Skyland Fire Adapted Community will execute an inter-agency wildfire evacuation drill on Monday, June 8, 2015 between the hours of 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. The drill will simulate a real evacuation event to give residents the opportunity to practice evacuating from their homes and getting to the designated safe zone. Situations which could cause a neighborhood evacuation would be a wildfire, earthquake, hazardous spill or some other catastrophic event.

When a wildland fire occurs, will you be ready? Preparedness begins by making a plan for your home and business. Consider the local hazards and what you can do to reduce them. For wildland fires your plan must include defensible space, and how to evacuate if authorities ask you to leave the area. Evacuation plans should include primary and alternate (if available) routes to safety, as well as how to contact friends and loved ones. Establish a rally point at a known location and know each others’ telephone numbers in case your cell phone contacts are not working.

Firefighters late Sunday sought to control a Southern California wildfire that broke out in a forested basin, prompting the evacuation of about 300 homes.

The Riverside County fire, near the Prado Basin and the intersection of Highways 91 and 71, was 1,020 acres and 35% contained, said Cal Fire. Evacuation orders had been lifted, but the agency warned nearby communities would experience low-lying smoke. The fire in the densely covered river basin had sent up huge plumes of smoke.

The final environmental impact report on Heavenly Mountain Resort's Epic Discovery Project has been completed and is now ready for public review. The new project, located at Heavenly Mountain Resort, will expand their summer activities to include more canopy tours, hiking and biking trails as well as interpretive activities.

Highway 80 has been reopened to four lanes this evening as firefighters continue to fight the Applegate Fire which had caused three lanes to be closed since Wednesday.

It is still unknown how the fire started but it has been listed as suspicious in nature. The fire has burned 420 acres as of Thursday evening and is now 25% contained. Firefighters worked in steep and rugged terrain to get the containment line in place. There are 1,419 personnel on the scene with air tanker support from the U.S. Forest Service.

The recreation center in South Lake Tahoe is now an American Red Cross evacuation center.

Last night at 8 p.m., City officials were informed that the town of Kyburz might need to go into an evacuation advisory situation, and with Highway 50 closed at the time residents wouldn't have been able to go the evacuation centers to the west.

The Red Cross staff is manning their station at the Recreation Complex 24/7 until the need is passed.

9/28/14 10:00 p.m. update: 4,420 firefighters and support staff are still on the scene of the 97.099 acre King Fire which is now 89% contained.

After 4 days of precipitation with accumulations of 1-3 inches, fire spread has been halted, however heat remains in the heavier fuels and in the heavy duff sheltered from the rain under the dense timber canopy. As the weather turns warm and dry over the next several days, expect to see an increase in fire activity and smoke production; however spread potential is extremely low, doe to the successful suppression efforts.

9/8/14 6:45 p.m. update: The Meadow Fire in Yosemite grew considerably overnight and has burned about 2,582 acres so far. What started as a small fire after lightning on August 16 got out of control on Sunday.

According to Yosemite's website, it is burning within the Little Yosemite Valley on both sides of the Merced River. All trails in the area are closed. Earlier Monday, approximately 100 hikers and backpackers were evacuated from the fire area in LYV. The fire is burning in Yosemite Wilderness.

An environmental impact report on the Heavenly Epic Discovery Project is ready for public viewing. The new project, located at Heavenly Mountain Resort, will expand their summer activities to include more canopy tours, hiking and biking trails as well as interpretive activities.

Since 2011 the U.S. Forest Service has allowed more summer activities on national forest lands.

The following increase in activities are being proposed:

7/30/14 update: Firefighters are getting the upper hand on a wildfire north of the town of Plymouth. All evacuation orders have been lifted.

So far, 4,240 acres have burned as well as 19 homes and 47 outbuildings. The fire did not spread overnight. The increase in reported acreage burned is due to a precise GPS mapping.

According to Cal Fire, patrol and mop-up of the fire will continue for several days. Rugged terrain and hot, dry weather conditions in addition to hazards associated with mines within the fire area continue to be a challenge for firefighters.

Several agencies are coming together on Saturday, June 21st for the first Wildfire Safety Expo in South Lake Tahoe.

The threat of wildfire is extremely high this fire season due to record drought conditions in the West. To provide information on creating home evacuation plans, preparing for fire, creating defensible space, the expo has been created.

The expo will be held in the TJ Maxx parking lot from noon to 3 p.m.

A year and a half road construction project will result in the closure of Kingsbury Grade for almost 75 days this year and more in 2015. Since this will have an impact on local businesses, residents and commuters, a forum was held on Wednesday in order to inform the community about the impact.

A full house was on hand in the TahoeChamber conference room to listen to representatives from Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT), Tahoe Transportation District (TTD) and the road construction company.

Heavenly Mountain Resort's proposal to expand to year round, non-skiing activities is now under review by the U.S. Forest Service, Tahoe Regional Planning Agency and the Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board. Heavenly's plan is to create a summer experience for guests with the addition of zipline and skycycle canopy tours, a mountain bike park, a ropes course, water activities, hiking trails,mountain excursion tours and nature interpretation.