red flag

There are extreme fire danger warnings up for Lake Tahoe, the Sierra Nevada and Western Nevada starting on Tuesday, September 11 at 1:00 p.m.

The Lake Wind Advisory will run until 9:00 p.m. Tuesday. Winds will be from the Southwest 15 to 20 mph with gusts to 35 mph. Wave heights will be from one to three feet with highest waves from mid-lake to east shores. Small boats, kayaks and paddle boards will be prone to capsizing and should remain off lake waters until conditions
improve.

A Red Flag Warning has been issued for the Sierra, including the Donnell Fire area where 23,824 acres since starting on August 1. Northwest winds and low relative humidity may increase activity along the southern and eastern areas of the fire, keeping smoke away from Lake Tahoe. Concern areas include Long Valley, Haypass, Sardine, and Red Rock Meadows. The fire may also travel in a Southeast direction towards Kennedy Meadows within the Middle Fork Stanislaus River corridor. A Forest Order Closure has been issued for the Carson-Iceberg Wilderness and Spicer Lake.

8:00 p.m. 8/5/18 UPDATE: SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The body of a 21-year-old California man was located in Lake Tahoe Sunday afternoon, more than 24 hours after he jumped off a boat near Edgewood Tahoe.

El Dorado County Sheriff's Office cadaver dogs alerted others to the body of the man about one-quarter mile off shore between Tahoe Meadows and Lakeside Marina just before 5:00 p.m. Sunday, according to South Lake Tahoe Police Officer Traci Trapani.

For more on the story: http://southtahoenow.com/story/08/05/2018/california-man-drowns-lake-tahoe
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There are important regulations to be aware of when visiting and living in Lake Tahoe, and not all jurisdictions have the same rules.

City of South Lake Tahoe

No outside fires are allowed in the City unless it is a cooking fire with charcoal in a barbecue or in a fire pit with gas piped in, or one that uses liquid petroleum. Anything that creates embers is banned, including wood burning fire pits and backyard bonfires.

Even if wood fire pit has mesh lid, it is banned. No open burning is allowed at this time, including the burning of pine needles are yard debris.

Overnight fire conditions were very active on several fronts forcing additional
evacuations across Northern California. Firefighters are battling 22 large
wildfires that have burned nearly 170,000 acres. Firefighters are bracing for
the winds to shift this evening and increase in speed. 17 people are confirmed
to have died in the wildfires this week. 11 people alone died in the Tubbs Fire,
making it the 6th deadliest fire in our state’s history.
While damage assessment continues on all the fires, it is estimated that at

Overnight significant winds fanned over a dozen fires across Northern California. 15 new wind whipped wildfires in nine counties have already burned over 73,000 acres in the past 12 hours. Firefighters have been challenged with winds gusting in excess of 50 mph causing extreme rates of spread and volatile burning conditions.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Records aren't expected to fall this week, but South Lake Tahoe will continue to see warm and sunny days. Winds will increase on Monday and Tuesday.

South Lake Tahoe broke records three of last seven days with all time highs of 90 on June 19, 87 on June 20 and 86 on June 21.

Records and forecast temperatures this week:
June 26 - 89 (2015) - 81
June 27 - 87 (1981) - 78
June 28 - 89 (2013) - 78
June 29 - 89 (2013) - 81
June 30 - 89 (2013) - 81
July 1 - 92 (2013) - 82
July 2 - 90 (2013) - 86

A fire near Spooner Lake brought out multiple agencies and the two SuperScoopers staying at the Lake Tahoe Airport Tuesday afternoon, but the quick response kept the fire at just over 1/2 acre before being contained.

With Red Flag conditions existing at the time, engines and crews from the US Forest Service, Cal Fire, Tahoe Douglas Fire, Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest and BLM all responded to the Spooner Lake State Park after receiving the call at 3:58 p.m.

The fires responsible for sending smoke into the Lake Tahoe Basin and Northern Nevada have burned 47,876 acres since being started by lightning strikes on Friday morning.

Known as the Virginia Mountains Complex, the five separate wildland fires include the Anderson (13,196 acres), Sage (4,238 acres), Seven Lakes (3,063 acres), Rock (2,293 acres) and Tule (27,379 acres) Fires. All are burning on mostly BLM land within about 20 miles of each other in an arc about 35 miles north of Reno.

Hot and dry weather will continue in the region according to the National Weather Service, but with the warm temperatures and low humidity comes a "Fire Weather Warning."

NWS is forecasting gusty winds and high fire danger on Sunday and Monday and they are urging extreme caution, especially near dry grass and brush.

Gusty winds and waves up to 3 feet will produce hazardous conditions for boating, kayaking and paddle boarding. Calm lake conditions in the morning can quickly turn dangerous once the winds kick up, so remember to always wear your personal flotation device.

The post-holiday week starts off with a Lake Wind Advisory on Lake Tahoe and Red Flag Warnings across Western Nevada. Expect winds in South Lake Tahoe to be 5-15 mph during the day and evening, with gusts up to 25 mph.

The Lake Wind Advisory is from 1:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Carson City and Reno winds will be up to 35 mph.

The rest of the week's forecast from the National Weather Service:

Tonight - Clear, with a low around 47. Southwest wind around 5 mph.

Tuesday - Widespread haze. Sunny, with a high near 75. Southwest wind 5 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph.

The Red Flag Program has been initiated in South Lake Tahoe for the third year to inform and educate the public when the weather adds to the existing fire danger.

Sout Tahoe Fire Rescue crews will monitor the weather, and when it reaches a red flag warning, they will do the following:

STFR will raise a RED FLAG at each fire station.

STFR will add extra personnel to staff a Type 3 (Brush) engine for an aggressive fire attack. The staffed engine will have a Red Flag Banner to help alert the community. The Banner will say “Red Flag Day- Critical Fire Weather”.

Expect high winds and waves up to four feet on Thursday as a low pressure weather system drops from the Pacific Coast and passes through the Lake Tahoe basin. Winds will be 15-20 mph with gusts up to 25 mph.

With an increase in winds also comes an increase in fire dangers.

Dry condition paired with gusty winds can cause fires to get large before responders can get to them.

The Red Flag warning is from August 13 at 2 p.m. to August 14 at 11 a.m.
The Lake Wind Advisory lasts from August 13 at 2 p.m. to August 14 at 5 p.m.

6:00 p.m. update 6/29/15

Firefighters made a lot of progress on the fire lines at the Washington Fire south of Markleeville on Monday, gaining containment of 56% of the perimeter. So far, 17,787 acres have burned.

The lightning caused fire grew quickly a week ago, from 30 acres on June 19 to 6,500 acres by June 21.

At one time, over 1,100 fire personnel were working on suppression of the fire. Those numbers were reduced today to 860 as containment grew.

The National Weather Service in Reno has issued a Red Flag Warning for gusty winds and low humidity in effect from 12:00 p.m. through 10 p.m. Sunday for the Lake Tahoe Basin and parts of western Nevada.

They are calling for winds southwest to west at 15 to 25 mph and gusts up to 40 mph, with two to four foot waves on Lake Tahoe. These are hazardous conditions for kayakers and paddleboarders.

This combination of gusty winds and low humidity will create conditions that could promote rapid fire growth.

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.

The Lake Tahoe Unified School District is renewing their focus on raising the attendance rates of students in the district's seven schools. Not only is being at school essential to a good education, it's also essential to the District's budget.

On Tuesday, the LTUSD Board will vote on a proclamation to declare September as "Attendance Awareness Month." They want parents, students, teachers, staff, administrators and the community to focus on "Every School Day Matters" and help keep kids in school.

During the 2013/14 school year, the attendance rates were:

Bijou - 92.3%

CAL FIRE PIO Berlant, @CALFIRE_PIO - California Statewide Fire Summary: Nearly 8,000 firefighters remain on the frontlines as nearly a dozen major wildfires continue to burn. Yesterday, CAL FIRE crews contained the Swedes Fire that burned in Butte County, just as a new fire ignited on the Fort Hunter Liggett Military Installation.

UPDATE 8:02PM: State Route 207 Kingsbury Grade is now open to motorists with controls. Please use caution around firefighters and equipment that remain working the fire.

Fire personnel will remain on scene to gain further containment of this fire. The cause of this fire is still under investigation.

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UPDATE: 7:17PM: Around 200 firefighters remain on scene tonight on the Kings fire on the Carson Valley side of Kingsbury Grade near Lake Tahoe. The fire is approximately 4 to 5 acres in size, Douglas County authorities report. Containment is estimated by 8 p.m.

South Lake Tahoe fire crews responded Tuesday night to a small brush fire, about quarter acre or less in size off of Eloise and 7th street. It was knocked down at 8:16 p.m. Firefighters who arrived reported smoke billowing with a low rate of spread and were able to get a handle on it with the fire trucks called to it. Firefighters built a "scratch line" ring around the fire and quickly knocked it down. The fire was called in at 8:10 p.m.
A Red Flag Warning for gusty winds and low humidity is in effect for the Sierra and Lake Tahoe Basin through Wednesday.

UPDATE 10:55AM: The Springs fire in the Pine Nut mountains east of Gardnerville in Douglas County held to 1,000 acres overnight and is five percent contained, according to Sierra Front Interagency Dispatch Center. Scattered thunderstorms are in the forecast today.

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10:13PM: Smoke moved into the Lake Tahoe Basin on Sunday night as a result of Sunday afternoon fires sparked by lightning in Douglas County which have reportedly burned about 1,000 acres in the Pine Nut mountains east of Gardnerville. Fire crews are still working the scene, which was said to be growing at a moderate rate. Thunderstorms rattled much of western Nevada Sunday afternoon. Some scattered showers could happen in the Lake Tahoe Basin tonight, according to the National Weather Service in Reno. A Red Flag warning for high winds is in effect for the mountains east of the Lake Tahoe Basin until 5 a.m. Monday morning.

A Red Flag warning has been issued by the National Weather Service in Reno until 10 p.m. Thursday night for the Lake Tahoe Basin, Eastern Sierra and Western Nevada. Low pressure associated with a jet stream will pass over the Sierra today producing low humidity and gusty winds to 40 mph across Northeast California, the Lake Tahoe Basin and the Eastern Sierra. The combination of law humidity and wind will create critical fire conditions, according to the weather service.

An area of low pressure will push a cold front across northern California and Nevada Friday, producing gusty afternoon and early evening winds. These winds will combine with low relative humidity to create critical fire weather conditions for the Lake Tahoe Basin and Sierra, according to the National Weather Service in Reno.
Southwest winds Friday afternoon will become west Friday evening with sustained speeds of 15 to 30 mph and gusts of 40 to 45 mph.