Smoke suffocating Lake Tahoe
Approaching Caldor Fire disrupts businesses, travel plans of visitors
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE — Smoke and ash pouring into the Lake Tahoe basin from the Caldor Fire turned this alpine paradise Tuesday into a place not to be enjoyed but endured.
The skies, typically as blue as the lake, were a yellowish gray and the normally pinescented air reeked.
Campgrounds and beaches were closed, boats were banned from the lake and even the signature gondola that carries visitors from the Stateline area to Heavenly’s mountaintop resort was shut down. Brewfest, a craft beer tasting fundraiser slated for the coming weekend was called off along with a pair of Eric Church concerts in the outdoor Lake Tahoe Amphitheater behind Harvey’s casino.
It was not the late summer at the lake that residents and visitors are used to.
“We’ve never seen this much smoke here, ever,” said Joe Stella, a manager at the Powder House ski, snowboard and bike rental shop.
Normally, he would have rented 20 to 25 bikes to tourists eager to ride South Lake Tahoe’s scenic bike routes.
But not on Tuesday. Air quality index levels reached hazardous levels and health officials advised people to stay indoors. And most did. The resorts, casinos and shopping centers — and the
“I wouldn’t recommend it. Think of all the stuff you’re breathing in.”
Joe Stella, manager at Powder House ski and bike rental shop, on the notion of bicycling in the smoke
bike paths — were largely empty.
The Caldor Fire, which started on Aug. 14 south of Grizzly Flats, had burned 122,980 acres by Tuesday evening and was 11% contained.
Firefighters made gains Monday night, taking advantage of decreased wind and improved humidity to battle the flames, though small spot fires popped up, in some instances jumping a half-mile ahead of the fire.
The blaze has destroyed 461 homes, plus a school and two fire stations, and injured two residents. More than 17,000 structures remained threatened, Cal Fire said, and more than 33,000 residents in Amador and El Dorado counties have been evacuated.
So far, the fire remains outside the Tahoe basin and no evacuations or warnings have been issued for the community. But the smoke, pushed by winds from the southwest, flowed north toward the lake.
Air quality around Lake Tahoe was considered “very unhealthy” or “hazardous” Tuesday morning, according to The Chronicle's Air Quality Map.
The skies in South Lake Tahoe were surprisingly clear and sunny early Tuesday, residents said, but by late morning they turned gray then became yellow and grew increasingly thick by midafternoon, making it tough to see beyond the first rows of trees in the forested area.
At the Powder House bike rental shop, Stella said he was neither surprised nor distressed by the dearth of customers willing to pedal through the smoke.
“I wouldn't recommend it,” he said, wiping ash from the seat of one of the bikes out front. “Think of all the stuff you're breathing in.”
Many people bought N95 masks, air purifiers, and even air filters and box fans, to make makeshift air purifiers, said Don Carrington, general manager of Ace Hardware in the Village Center shopping center. He sold 50 to 100 N95 masks in a day and was down to his last box.
The choking smoke drove some residents to voluntarily evacuate and prompted pleas on social media for visitors to stay away to avoid interfering with firefighters.
Carol Chaplin, president and CEO of the Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority, said the group is not discouraging visitors but recommending they check the latest fire and air quality conditions so they know what they're heading into.
“We just think best thing to do is to let our visitors make the calls they need to make,” she said.
Some visitors were still arriving at Tahoe despite the smoke but finding little to do.
Six friends from the Bay Area who had been planning their trip for a while came anyway after seeing how bad the air quality was. It was too late to get refunds, they said.
They were supposed to go boating, but their reservation was canceled, Tommy Chea and Nicole Ferras explained as the group took photos at the giant chair made of skis at Heavenly Resort. Now, they were just walking around to whatever was open, figuring out how to spend time until Thursday.
“We just didn't want to lose money,” Minh Tran said.
Eoghain O'Neill, visiting from Oregon with his two kids, said he would have canceled his trip had he known the smoke was so bad.
A section of Highway 50, which links the Bay Area and South Lake Tahoe, has been closed to give fire crews easier access to the Caldor Fire.
Farther north, the Dixie Fire grew to 733,475 acres by Tuesday night. Since it sparked on July 13, the blaze has burned parts of five counties and become the second-largest wildfire in California history. It was 43% contained Tuesday evening, up from 40% Monday.
The Dixie Fire has injured three first responders and destroyed more than 1,200 structures, including more than 700 residences. Another approximately 11,800 structures remain threatened, Cal Fire said.
Late Tuesday, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that the White House approved a request for a federal disaster declaration that will expand housing assistance, counseling, medical and legal services in several counties impacted by the Dixie and River fires. More areas, including those near the Caldor Fire, could be offered similar resources once conditions allow officials to assess the scope of the damage, the governor's office said in a news release.
Danielle Echeverria, Michael Cabanatuan and Andres Picon are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. Email: danielle. echeverria@sfchronicle.com, mcabanatuan@sfchronicle.com, andy.picon@hearst.com Twitter: @DanielleEchev, @ctuan, @andpicon