Improving weather conditions are helping firefighters battle the Caldor Fire that was threatening South Lake Tahoe earlier this week. More than 22,000 residents in South Lake Tahoe are still evacuated.
"We're battling what we can battle and waiting for those winds to subside so that we can get in there and actively engage these fires," Steven Volmer, a fire behavior analyst at Cal Fire, said Wednesday evening. The National Weather Service said low humidity and wind gusts up to 45 mph over ridgelines in the Sierra Nevada could help spark flames, but those conditions were expected to subside Thursday and Friday.
As the fire threatens homes and the greater Lake Tahoe area late Wednesday, President Joe Biden approved an emergency declaration. The declaration, which was requested by California Gov. Gavin Newsom, offers federal assistance with the blaze, according to USA Today. The Caldor Fire has burned more than 212,000 acres and destroyed more than 650 buildings since it broke out on August 14th. This morning, the Caldor Fire is 29% contained.