Rim Fire

Lawmakers from Nevada and California met Monday on the shores of Lake Tahoe to discuss how to protect a national treasure as it faces continued threats to water clarity, invasive species, wildfire and drought.

Ever since President Bill Clinton held the first meeting in South Lake Tahoe in 1997, the annual focus of the Lake Tahoe Summit is to protect what Mark Twain called "the fairest picture the whole world affords."

The Meadow Fire burning in Yosemite National Park continues to grow, with smoke expected to impact the Carson City and Carson Valley areas though it has been minimal because of rain showers throughout the region.

The blaze may be a spot fire from the Meadow Fire, believed to be caused by lightning, forest and park officials said. It was discovered at approximately 12:30 p.m. Sunday and has grown to 2,582 acres as of Monday morning. It is burning within the Little Yosemite Valley on both sides of the Merced River.

UPDATE: The ‪Meadow Fire‬ in Yosemite National Park is exhibited explosive growth Sunday, producing pyrocumulus clouds visible in Carson City and Reno, according to the National Weather Service.

The fire is burning in the Little Yosemite Valley area and at last report was 700 acres and growing. Smoke from the fire will impact areas to the northeast of Yosemite. High resolution forecast models show that a layer of smoke will affect the Carson City, Reno and Carson Valley areas by Monday morning if intense burning continues, according to the weather service.

A 32-year-old Tuolumne County man, Keith Matthew Emerald, has been indicted on four counts of allegedly starting last year's 250,000-acre Rim Fire, the largest fire in the Sierra Nevada in recorded history. United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner and U.S. Forest Service Pacific Southwest Regional Forester Randy Moore announced the indictment Thursday.

The Rim Fire, which burned for nine weeks and sent heavy smoke that choked Carson City, Carson Valley and Lake Tahoe air for weeks, included large areas in the Stanislaus National Forest and Yosemite National Park.

How the Sierra’s largest wildfire affected Lake Tahoe and several other mountain lakes is the focus of a new study by scientists.

Researchers based at UC Davis’ Tahoe Environmental Research Center, the University of Nevada, Reno and three other universities began working as the Rim Fire was still smoldering last summer.

The Carson Tahoe Health Foundation announces HopeFest 2013, an outdoor concert offering free admission with all sales on food, drinks and raffle tickets directly benefitting local cancer patients.

The outdoor event featuring the band Notch 8 takes place on Friday, October 4 from 5:00 P.M. to 8:00 P.M. outside of the Firkin & Fox restaurant on Third Street in Carson City. The event was rescheduled due to hazardous air conditions caused by the California Rim Fire.

I would like to extend a warm welcome to long-time friend Doug Busey of Douglas County, who is joining Carson Now. Doug will be serving as another outdoor writer at this website, specializing in bi-weekly fishing reports for our local area.

Doug's bi-weekly focus will be at locations such as: The East and West Carson Rivers in California, Blue Lakes, Caples Lake, Heenan Lake, Indian Creek Reservoir, Red Lake, Silver Lake, Topaz Lake and Lake Tahoe.

Strong afternoon winds and low humidity have prompted a Red Flag Warning by the National Weather Service for much of Northern Nevada and the Sierra.

While the wind is helping push some of the Rim Fire smoke out of Carson City, Carson Valley and Lyon County, it has also created critical fire weather conditions because of the low humidity created, according to the weather service.

Investigators from the U.S. Forest Service Law Enforcement & Investigations and Tuolumne County District Attorney's Office have determined the Rim Fire began when a hunter allowed an illegal fire to escape.

There is no indication the hunter was involved with illegal marijuana cultivation on public lands and no marijuana cultivation sites were located near the origin of the fire. No arrests have been made at this time and the hunter's name is being withheld pending further investigation, according to a Forest Service news release.

Depending on wind speed and direction, Carson City air quality has fluctuating between moderate (tolerable) and hazardous (you can taste it) thanks to drifting smoke from the Rim Fire. You need to be quick if you’re going to get your mountain bike fix.

A smoky cloud has engulfed Northern Nevada over the past few weeks. The smoke, coming from the Rim Fire west of Yosemite National Park in California, has worsened the air quality index (AQI) for the Reno-Sparks area. AQI in the... Read More ›

Clearing skies through some of the smoke will persist today in Carson City, Carson Valley, Lyon County and Lake Tahoe as the Rim Fire is now 75 percent contained. Cooler temperatures and higher humidity helped firefighters gain on the fire which has now consumed 235,841 acres in the Stanislaus National Forest and Yosemite National Park.

A Dense Smoke Advisory has been lifted, at least for now, for the Carson City region, but continues in the Sierra for Alpine County south of Markleeville and Mono County north of Mammoth Lakes, according to the National Weather Service in Reno.

Even with pockets of blue sky today due to a change in air flow, smoke from the Rim Fire near Yosemite will continue to impact Carson City, Carson Valley and Lyon County through the weekend.

Dense smoke advisories continue for much of the Carson City region and into the Sierra. Heavier smoke could return Sunday and Monday, however, due to a more southerly flow of air, according to the National Weather Service in Reno.

A Dense Smoke Advisory issued by the National Weather Service continues Wednesday for Carson City and Carson Valley.

Using data provided by the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection, Carson City and Douglas County officials continue to monitor the rapid decline in air quality. On Wednesday Douglas County sent a news release stating that overnight pollution levels moved into the "hazardous" classification.

Here is this week's fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, Northern California and the Sierra. This report is for the week of Aug. 28 through Labor Day. Don't forget, California's second free day of fishing without a license will be Saturday, Sept. 7.

CARSON CITY — Currently, Carson Tahoe Health has experienced only a slight increase in patient volumes due to respiratory concerns linked to the “Hazardous” air quality caused by the Rim Fire.

Carson Tahoe Health has taken steps to proactively prepare and protect patients within CTH facilities. Precautions include consolidating entrances at the Carson Tahoe Regional Medical Center and Carson Tahoe Specialty Medical Center. These inpatient care areas have been equipped with air scrubbers and fans which have effectively maintained good air quality within the facilities.

An active wildfire season has sent Carson City Fire Department personnel on more than 20 assignments this year, including the Rim Fire burning near Yosemite National Park.

On Saturday Carson City Fire Department Capt. Matt Donnelly was assigned as a strike team leader with other area engines to the fire, which has chewed nearly 180,000 acres in the Stanislaus National Forest in Tuolumne County. Thick smoke from the Rim Fire continues to push through Carson City, Carson Valley, Lyon County and much of Northern Nevada.

Air quality in Carson City, Carson Valley and Lyon County will likely straddle between "unhealthy" and "very unhealthy" conditions through at least the week, the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection reports.

Smoke and ash from the Rim Fire near Yosemite National Park is being pushed in the atmosphere directly over the region causing extremely elevated amounts of particulate matter. The levels of particulate matter equate to “Very Unhealthy” on the Air Quality Index (AQI) level of health concern, according to a news release.

A very interesting view of the Rim Fire:

I took this picture this evening with my GoPro. See more at www.upproductions.org

The HopeFest Benefit Concert at the Carson Tahoe Cancer Center has been canceled due to hazardous air quality from Rim Fire smoke. Carson Tahoe Health Foundation had net proceeds of over $50,000 for their 2012 2nd Annual Carson City HopeFest fundraiser. The CTH Foundation is the only non-profit organization focused on supporting Carson area cancer patients with living expenses. PLEASE HELP FILL the Hope Chest with your generous donation.

Air quality in the Carson City area has been designated as "Very Unhealthy" according to the Nevada Division of Environmental Protection and is expected to remain this way over the weekend.

Air quality monitors in Gardnerville and Carson City indicated extremely elevated amounts of particulate matter in the air because of the wildfires burning in California, specifically the Rim Fire near Yosemite National Park.

Here's a view of Friday morning's sun in Jacks Valley due smoke from the Rim Fire. The photo was submitted by J Maher. The fire burning in California's Tuolumne County near Yosemite National Park has filled Carson City, Carson Valley and Lyon County skies with thick, unhealthy smoke.

The Rim Fire has grown to 165 miles in size and is 2 percent contained. California Gov. Jerry Brown has issued a state of emergency.

This Thursday evening photo was taken in the backyard of Dayton resident Janet Baker. Lyon County Office of Emergency Management urges citizens with respiratory illness to stay indoors. Citizens should use caution when physically exerting themselves in this smokey environment. Please check on those that you know that are elderly, young and/or have health issues.

Officials anticipate these conditions to exist for the next couple of days.

Nevada Division of Environmental Protection air quality monitors in Carson City and in Gardnerville are reporting high particulate matter from smoke indicating the air quality Thursday is unhealthy, officials said.

A fire burning in Tuolumne County, Calif., near Yosemite National Park, is the main source of smoke in the Carson City, Carson Valley, Reno and Lyon County regions. The Rim Fire is estimated at nearly 54,000 acres and growing Thursday with 2 percent containment.

Nevada-Douglas County Emergency Management and The Bureau of Pollution Control are closely monitoring air quality concerns from smoke conditions drifting into the valley from the Rim Fire in Tuolumne County, according to a Douglas County news release.

The Rim Fire was estimated at nearly 54,000 acres as of 7 a.m. Thursday morning, up from 16,000 acres on Wednesday. The most recent air samples from this afternoon put the current air quality in the upper end of the "moderate" level in the Carson Valley, the news release states.

A wildfire burning in Tuolumne County near Yosemite National Park is causing much of the smoke seen Thursday in Carson City and Carson Valley, according to Sierra Front Interagency Dispatch Center. The Rim Fire burning in the Stanislaus National Forest is 2 percent contained and has burned nearly 53,000 acres since August 17. Around 2,500 structures are threatened in the Pine Mountain Lake area. The smoke from the fire has pushed north filling much of the valley areas around Carson City and into the Lake Tahoe Basin, said Sierra Front spokesman Mark Struble.