Fire in Tahoe National Forest Continues to Grow

From the U.S. Forest Service incident report:

The American fire is burning in a heavily forested area of very steep terrain on Deadwood Ridge, approximately 17 miles northeast of Foresthill in Tahoe National Forest. Access to the fire is limited, and firefighter safety is a concern due to difficult terrain.

Fire size is estimated at 800-1,000 acres, with heavy smoke making it difficult to obtain precise numbers. The fire has crossed the North Fork of the Middle Fork of the American River and is burning toward the Last Chance area. Firefighters reported a moderate rate of spread with short uphill runs yesterday, and more of the same is expected today. Firefighters were able to make some progress on line construction overnight.

Multiple Forest Service and Cal Fire engines, crews, dozers, air tankers, and helicopters are committed, with additional resources on order. Smokejumpers are being utilized. Efforts are being focused mainly on the Deadwood Ridge and Last Chance sides of the fire. While firefighters are working to protect cultural resources from the fire and from suppression impacts, firefighter and public safety are the first priorities.

The Central Coast #7 Type II Incident Management Team is en route and expected to arrive today.

Smoke in the areas of Foresthill, Auburn, Nevada City, and the valley will likely continue over the next several days.

There are no current road closures, but people are being asked to stay out of the fire area for their own safety and the safety of firefighting personnel.

The town of Foresthill is not endangered and there are no evacuations ordered.

U.S. Forest Service Incident Updates

Smoke from the American Fire west of Lake Tahoe will continue to affect the Reno-Tahoe area over the coming days. The American Fire is burning heavy timber on the western slopes of the Sierra, about 25 miles west of Lake Tahoe in the canyon of the North Fork of the Middle Fork American River. This is a graphic of Hysplit model run of the projected smoke moving into the Reno-Tahoe area this evening. West to Southwest winds will push smoke into Reno-Tahoe late in the afternoon and into the evening hours. Green shading shows areas where smoke is most likely to occur, while blue shading shows areas where smoke may be more dense.

Click here for the latest smoke map