Projected containment of fire near Lake Tahoe pushed back
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. (AP) — Firefighters battling a stubborn California wildfire Friday near the Lake Tahoe resort region faced gusty winds and dry conditions that made vegetation ready to burn.
The Caldor Fire has proved so difficult to fight that fire managers this week pushed back the projected date for full containment from next week to Sept. 8, but even that estimate was tenuous.
“I think that’s going to be assessed on a day-by-day basis,” said Keith Wade, a spokesman for the incident management team.
Burning since Aug. 14 in the Sierra Nevada, the Caldor Fire has scorched nearly 144,000 acres, or 225 square miles (583 square kilometers), and remained only 12% contained early Friday.
Winds and temperatures were expected to pick up over several days while humidity drops, adding to the challenges endured by crews working in rugged terrain.
“That’s what’s closing the window of opportunity we’ve had to make progress and really get hold of the fire,” said Daniel Berlant, assistant deputy director of the state firefighting agency.
The Caldor Fire is one of nearly 90 large blazes in the U.S. Many are in the West, where they burn trees and brush desiccated by a megadrought. Climate change has made the region warmer and drier in the past 30 years and will continue to make the weather more extreme and wildfires more destructive, according to scientists.
On Friday, flames churned through mountains just southwest of the Tahoe Basin, home to thousands and a playground for millions of tourists who visit the alpine lake in summer, ski at the many resorts in winter and gamble at its casinos year-round.
Johnny White and Lauren McCauley decided to flee their home in the mountains above Lake Tahoe once they could see flames on the webcam at their local ski resort.
Even as ash...