‘We’re nervous for sure’: Tahoe fire restrictions land before summer holiday

Charcoal and wood fires are banned across the Tahoe-Truckee region until further notice under fire restrictions implemented earlier this week, just as Juneteenth, the first holiday weekend of Tahoe’s busy summer tourist season, is set to begin. 

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After a mild and warm winter, the forest is drying out earlier than normal, South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue Chief Jim Drennan told SFGATE earlier this month during a gathering of fire officials and journalists. As fuels dry up, fire risk increases, and restrictions follow. 

“We’re nervous for sure,” Drennan said, adding: “We had such a light winter. Thankfully, our reservoirs are mostly full.”

While charcoal and wood fires are not permitted, natural gas, propane or pellet barbecue grills along with smokers and firepits are allowed outdoors — unless a red flag warning is issued. On red flag days, open flames are not allowed at all. Tiki torches, fireworks, sparklers and firecrackers are also prohibited year-round in Tahoe.

“Conditions this year are telling us to get ahead of fire season, not react to it,” said Truckee Fire Chief Kevin McKechnie in a news release. “This ban is one of the most effective tools we have, and we’re grateful for a community that takes it seriously.” 

Humans cause almost 90% of wildfires in the United States, according to the Western Fire Chiefs Association, including from discarded cigarettes and unattended campfires.

According to Drennan, South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue has a strong track record of rapid response and putting out fires quickly within the city limits. What makes him more nervous are the illegal campfires that people start in the woods, far from the road. Those fires are difficult to reach and, if the wind is blowing hard, they can get out of control quickly. 

“It’s the one that starts way up on the mountain that we can’t get anywhere near and has a significant wind or weather event behind it,” Drennan said. 

South Lake Tahoe residents know all too well how an illegal campfire can quickly explode into a wildfire. On June 24, 2007, wind sparked flames from the embers of an abandoned campfire, starting the Angora Fire. 

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Though it burned 3,100 acres in Lake Valley near South Lake Tahoe and destroyed 254 homes, the Angora Fire was small compared to the megafires California has seen in more recent years. Almost 15 years later, the Caldor Fire burned across the other end of the valley, torching more than 200,000 acres and destroying 1,005 structures.

South Lake Tahoe’s fire chief is particularly concerned about the city’s population of unhoused and transient residents, which he says has increased in recent years. In the summer, nights still get cold, and people start campfires to stay warm. “We have a much larger transient population than we’ve ever had here,” Drennan said. 

Truckee residents are also marking a sobering anniversary: 25 years ago, a smoldering campfire ignited the Martis Fire under conditions that are eerily similar to what Tahoe is facing this year, with dry forest fuels following a below-average snowpack. The Martis Fire went on to burn 14,000 acres outside of Truckee, and it caused $18 million in damage. 

The Martis Fire could have been worse if not for Floriston resident Darin Bue, who started implementing defensible space around his property in the 1990s. His work to thin the forest around his home gave firefighters an advantage to stop the wildfire from continuing onward.

“This is why we spend so much time, energy and money investing in wildfire mitigation,” said Eric Horntvedt, the wildfire prevention manager with the Truckee Fire Protection District, in a news release. “Defensible space is the front line of protection against these damaging wildfires.”

Fire restrictions are also in effect for the North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District in Incline Village, Nevada, and the in Tahoe City and on Tahoe’s West Shore.

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