MEYERS, Calif. – Aug. 31: Josh Marone of the Roseville Fire Department cools down a hot spot burning close to homes in the Christmas Valley area of Meyers, Calif., Tuesday, Aug. 31, 2021. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
The Caldor Fire continued to threaten thousands of homes in and near South Lake Tahoe early Tuesday, a day after authorities ordered 22,000 residents to evacuate.
The blaze continues to move northeast in the Echo Summit and Christmas Valley areas and burned through 5,000 acres overnight. It has burned nearly 200,000 acres since starting August 14.
Firefighters continue to struggle with winds, which could reach gusts of 35 mph in most of the region and as high as 50 mph on ridges. A red-flag warning is in place until 11 p.m. Wednesday.
Firefighters are focused on saving houses in the Lake Tahoe Basin and are hoping they can stop the flames before the blaze moves into denser neighborhoods closer to Lake Tahoe.
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – September 02: Firefighters from Copperopolis, Calif., works on a control burn along Highway 89 in the Christmas Valley area of South Lake Tahoe, Calif., on Sept. 2, 2021. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group) SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – September 02: Firefighters from various agencies stage along Highway 89 as they conduct a control burn in the Christmas Valley area of South Lake Tahoe, Calif., on Sept. 2, 2021. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group) SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – September 02: Josh Griesel, a U.S. Forest Service forestry technician, works on a control burn along Highway 89 in the Christmas Valley area of South Lake Tahoe, Calif., on Sept. 2, 2021. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group) SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – September 02: Trees burn as U.S. Forest Service and other agencies conduct a control burn in the Christmas Valley area of South Lake Tahoe, Calif., on Sept. 2, 2021. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group) MEYERS, Calif. – August 31: Yuba City firefighter Mike Leonard works at containing a spot fire near buildings in the Christmas Valley area of Meyers, Calif., as crews continue battling the Caldor Fire, late Tuesday evening, Aug. 31, 2021. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group) ECHO SUMMIT, Calif. – Aug. 31: The sun sets through smoky skies over Echo Summit as the Caldor Fire smolders, Tuesday afternoon, Aug. 31, 2021, near Lake Tahoe. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group) Karl Mondon/Bay Area News GroupMEYERS, CALIFORNIA – August 31: Tyler Craig, center, and Michael Richmond, Los Angeles county fire fighters, work on a fire line while battling the Caldor Fire in Meyers, Calif., Aug. 31, 2021. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group) MEYERS, Calif. – Aug. 30: The Caldor Fire burns down the granite face of Echo Summit threatening Christmas Valley in Meyers, Calif. Monday, Aug. 30, 2021. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group) Karl Mondon/Bay Area News GroupMEYERS, Calif. – Aug. 30: Cal Fire’s Brad LaForce keeps a check on the Caldor Fire burning near homes in South Lake Tahoe, Calif., Monday evening, Aug. 30, 2021. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
MEYERS, Calif. – Aug. 31: The Roseville Fire Department protects a home from the Caldor Fire, early Tuesday morning Aug. 31, 2021, on South Upper Truckee Road in the Christmas Valley area of Meyers, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
MEYERS, Calif. – Aug. 30: The Del Rosa Hot Shots from San Bernardino, Calif. position themselves at the base of Echo Summit as the Caldor Fire burns into the Christmas Valley section of Meyers, Calif., Monday, Aug. 30, 2021. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
MEYERS, Calif. – Aug. 30: A bulldozer operator cuts a fire break against the advancing flames of the Caldor Fire in South Lake Tahoe, Calif., Monday evening, Aug. 30, 2021. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
ECHO LAKE, Calif. – Aug. 30: Mark Christensen from Gilroy fights the Caldor Fire on a strike team made up of SCU and CZU Cal Fire units from Santa Clara and Santa Cruz counties, Monday, Aug. 30, 2021, at Camp Berkeley near Echo Lake. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
ECHO LAKE, Calif. – Aug. 30: A hot shot crew marches up Christmas Valley in Meyers, Calif., as the Caldor Fire makes its push over Echo Summit into the Tahoe basin late Monday, Aug. 30, 2021. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
ECHO LAKE, Calif. – Aug. 30: Firefighters from the SCU Cal Fire unit in Santa Clara County back their Type 3 engine down to Echo Lake to refill their water tank while fighting the Caldor Fire, Monday, Aug. 30, 2021. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
ECHO LAKE, Calif. – Aug. 30: Mark Christensen from Gilroy fights the Caldor Fire on a strike team made up of SCU and CZU Cal Fire units from Santa Clara and Santa Cruz counties, Monday, Aug. 30, 2021, at Camp Berkeley near Echo Lake. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
MEYERS, Calif. – Aug. 31: Jeff Endrus, a firefighter from Yuma, Arizona, begins his first shift at the Caldor Fire Tuesday, Aug. 31, 2021, protecting homes in Meyers, Calif. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group) Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group
MEYERS, Calif. – Aug. 31: Joey Anderson looks back at his home of 40 years where he’s raised eight children in Meyers, Calif., Tuesday, Aug. 31, 2021. “That’s why it’s so hard for me to drive away right now.” (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group)
ECHO LAKE, Calif. – Aug. 30: Jason Higgins monitors the march of the Caldor Fire as it burns down the face of Echo Summit into the Christmas Valley section of Meyers, Calif. Monday, Aug. 30, 2021. (Karl Mondon/Bay Area News Group) GARDNERVILLE, NEVADA – August 31: Veronica Foster, an evacuee from South Lake Tahoe, hugs her dog, Gracie, as she and her co-workers from Grocery Outlet in South Lake Tahoe spend time together outside an evacuation center in Gardnerville, Nev., on Tuesday, Aug. 31, 2021. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group)
GARDNERVILLE, NEVADA – August 31: Crystal Crow, left, her husband, Robert Crow, right, and their children, Richard, 15, center left, and Priscilla, 11, center, spend time around their tent outside an evacuation center in Gardnerville, Nev., on Tuesday, Aug. 31, 2021. The family is worried about whether their home in South Lake Tahoe will survive the Caldor Fire. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group)
