Praise God that weather predictions of high winds yesterday did not materialize and they were able to get the upper hand. The fire is 55% contained and no more homes were threatened. Thanks all for your prayers and kind comments. South Lake Tahoe is a very small town and everyone knows someone that has lost there home. There has been a community meeting every evening to give updates and let the community to vent and give input. The big discussion is on defensible space around your house. We have an association in the Tahoe Basin called the Tahoe Regional Planning Association (TRPA). A few years back they made regulations that all homeowners have to comply with regulations regarding water absorption on your property. If you have any bare ground they want you to put pine needles or woodchip around your house and rock on the drip lines this is all called BMP’s I have had this assessed and it will cost me over 3,000 to comply. But are they crazy to put my house in danger of fire. First reports from the fire line were homes that had done BMP’s were lost and those with lots of green grass and no BMP’s were easier to save. I have lots of grass and no BMP’s and no plans to put them in. In the first community meeting the TRPA rep was booed off the stage. The TRPA also has had regulation on clearing trees off or around your property. So the community is putting a big blame on the TRPA for regulations that did not give some homeowners a fighting chance.
3 comments:
I'm not sure I understand the reasoning behind putting down the woodchips. Did they think they wouldn't burn as easily as grass or they would soak up water better? That just doesn't make sense to me.
I am glad things didn't get worse. I still feel for all who lost their homes. Stay safe.
I'm with Stacy. I don't get why one would put flammable materials like woodchips and pine needles around ones property when conditions are ripe for forest fires. Sounds stupid to me. I'll bet there will be a lawsuit over that one.
I'm so glad you and your home are okay. We're still waiting to hear back from Michael's friend. No one knows what condition his property is in.
Stacy and Joannah
I agree with you that this is crazy to spread wood chip or pine needles around your house. It all comes down to Lake Tahoe water quality and trying to filter all the water that drains into the lake. Well the ash that is all over the beaches and in the Lake will do more to damage water quality then the water that may run off my property. The community needs to vent and this is just one underlining agency that is taking the heat. But not what caused the fire and tonight we will learn just how this fire started at the community meeting at 8:00.
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