Residents of the Lake Tahoe area of California are receiving evacuation orders as the Caldor Fire continues to spread.
As The New York Times reported, “As the Caldor fire intensified amid dry and windy conditions, thousands of people along the lake’s southern and western shores were ordered to evacuate. Crews of firefighters sped to put out spot fires only miles from South Lake Tahoe, Calif.”
According to The Washington Post, “On Monday, the Caldor Fire became the second fire in California history to cross the Sierra Nevada, traveling up and over the highest ridgetops.”
“We haven’t had fires burn from one side of the Sierra to the other,” Cal Fire Director Thom Porter said at a news conference Monday. “We did with the Dixie; now we have with the Caldor — two times in our history, and they are both happening this month.”
Thousands of people were evacuated from the Tahoe area, specifically on the western and southern shores of the lake.
“Experts warn that the Caldor Fire, which has burned about 192,000 acres, could continue its march toward Tahoe in the next few days, destroying thousands of structures and putting lives at risk,” the Post noted.
Fox News reported that California firefighters were using snow machines to battle the Caldor Fire blazes at a ski resort.
“The machines helped workers to protect the main base buildings of the Sierra-at-Tahoe ski resort, located in Twin Bridges near South Lake Tahoe,” the outlet noted.
As of Tuesday, Cal Fire listed the Caldor Fire as 16% contained and said it has been active for seventeen days. Its cause is unknown, but it has affected 191,607 acres.
CNN reported one resident decided to ease the fears of fellow evacuees by playing his violin on the road while people were stuck in a massive traffic jam trying to get out of the Tahoe area after evacuation orders were put forward.
“There was this traffic jam of all traffic jams, it was worse than trying to leave a Grateful Dead concert,” he said. “We moved along for about half a block and then it was solid.”
“I couldn’t just sit there and waste time,” he said. “I did feel like people were in their cars listening to me, like I was going to be giving a performance, but that really wasn’t the idea.”
“I was kind of looking around and hoping someone would bring out a guitar or a mandoline — the joy of making music just makes me feel really good,” he said.
This is not the only fire to be affecting the state of California.
As CBS San Francisco reported, “The second-largest wildfire in California history, the Dixie Fire burned another 36,000 acres over the past 24 hours and prompted new evacuations in Plumas County Tuesday.”
“As of Tuesday morning, the Dixie Fire had burned 807,396 acres, or nearly 1,300 square miles since the fire began on July 14 above the Cresta Dam in the Feather River Canyon area of the Sierra-Cascades region. Containment remained at 48%,” the outlet noted, adding, “The wildfire has destroyed more than 1,200 structures, including nearly 700 homes.”