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June 27, 2007
STRONG WINDS FAN FLAMES IN LAKE TAHOE FIRE
A
fire raging out of control just southwest of Lake Tahoe is threatening
homes
and has burned close to 3,100 acres since it was first reported on Sunday,
June 24, 2007,
according to the National Interagency Fire Center.
This
image from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on
NASA’s
Aqua satellite shows the Angora Fire on June 26, 2007.
The active fire area is outlined in red.
According to news reports, the Angora Lakes Resort and hundreds of
homes in the
towns of Meyers and South Lake Tahoe, CA, have been
evacuated. The fire
has already destroyed over 275 homes and other structures and at least
1,000
remain in its path. Two injuries have been attributed to the blaze.
High winds have been detrimental to efforts to control the blaze. When
the fire
first broke out on June 24, wind gusts of up to 30 mph helped spread
the fire
from 700 acres to 2,000 in the space of three hours.
Then on June 26, just after firefighters had begun to tame the blaze,
gusting
winds caused it to jump across a fire line and threaten additional
buildings,
according to fire officials. The National Weather Service is predicting
more
wind for the next few days, with gusts as high as 35 miles per hour.
As of June 27, 2007,
44 percent of the fire had been contained. Fire officials hope for full
containment by Sunday, July 1. Forest Service officials believe the
blaze was
ignited by human activity, but are not sure if it was set intentionally.
For
a high-resolution image, visit:
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/Archive/Jun2007/tahoe_AMO_2007177_lrg.jpg
##
Contact:
Sarah
L. DeWitt
Goddard Space
Flight Center
Sarah.L.DeWitt@nasa.gov
This
text is derived from:
http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/news/topstory/2007/tahoe_fire.html
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