Reuters AlertNet Lite - California Tahoe blaze seen extinguished by Sunday

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California Tahoe blaze seen extinguished by Sunday

26 Jun 2007 18:37:32 GMT
Source: Reuters

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif., June 26 (Reuters) - Fire crews expect to have a wildfire that consumed more than 2,700 acres (1,100 hectares) of forest near California's Lake Tahoe fully contained no later than July 1, a spokesman for the U.S. Forest Service said on Tuesday.

High winds that fanned the flames on Sunday had eased on Monday, allowing firefighters to begin containing the blaze after it swept through bone-dry timber and burned down 225 structures, 178 of them homes, local officials said.

By Monday evening about 1,900 firefighters backed by 145 engines had contained 40 percent of the blaze, and a drop in temperature overnight and rise in humidity are helping keep it in check.

"The fire barely budged last night," said Rex Norman, a Forest Service spokesman.

The estimated 1,000 residents evacuated at the height of the fire began returning to see if their homes had been saved, damaged or destroyed. Reflecting the blaze's haphazard path, smoldering foundations stood next to unscathed vacation homes.

Investigators believe the conflagration, named the Angora fire, was man-made, but they do not yet know if it was started accidentally or intentionally.

Ecologists who have studied the Lake Tahoe area have expected a major fire for years as more homes have been built deeper into forests prone to wildfires, especially after dry winters.

California firefighters are expecting a busy fire season across the state because there was little rainfall this past winter.

(Reporting by Kathryn Reed in South Lake Tahoe)

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Last updated:Tue Jun 26 18:38:41 2007