Wind shift keeps King Fire smoke away from Carson City
The King Fire, which started a week ago, Sept. 13, has now burned nearly 81,000 acres east of Pollock Pines in El Dorado County. As of Saturday morning, the human-caused fire is 10 percent contained.
There is no immediate threat to the Lake Tahoe Basin and ski resorts because of granite, peaks and lack of fuel between the fire and the lake, officials said. Highway 50 remains open and activities such as the IRONMAN Triathlon in North Lake Tahoe and the Lake of the Sky Air Show in South Lake Tahoe are going on as planned without the heavy smoke the basin experienced this week due to shifts in wind patterns.
There are area health advisories in effect in El Dorado, Placer, Nevada, Sierra, Yuba and Washoe counties because of the smoke. A change in wind direction is keeping much of the smoke out of Carson City and Carson Valley. According to the National Weather Service in Reno, western Nevada and the Sierra could experience showers and thunderstorms later Saturday and into Sunday because of low pressure moving northeast across California and Nevada.
Friday spot fires were moving up to 2 miles ahead of the fire, and one of those areas has burned 500 acres at the north end of the fire at French Meadows Reservoir. The fire has crossed into Place County and approaching the boundary of the Tahoe National Forest.
Fire activity Saturday may be higher than yesterday, especially where the canyons and east winds come into alignment. There is a chance of thunderstorms in the evening that could cause erratic winds and extreme fire behavior.
Cal Fire is reporting that homes and buildings have burned in the White Meadows area but they are waiting until it is safe to go in and assess damage.
— Paula Peterson of South Tahoe Now contributed to this report.
- Carson City
- 000
- activity
- Buildings
- Buildings.
- California
- carson
- City
- county
- Experience
- fire
- Fires
- forest
- French
- FRIDAY
- Health
- highway
- homes
- ironman
- Lake
- May
- Morning
- National Weather Service
- Nevada
- News
- Pines
- Safe
- saturday
- service
- Show
- Sierra
- Ski
- ski resorts
- Smoke
- south
- South Lake Tahoe
- tahoe
- Tahoe National Forest
- Thunderstorms
- triathlon
- Washoe
- weather
- weather service
- western
- White
- wind
- Carson Valley
- Lake Tahoe
- reno