Activities surround 10th anniversary of Angora Fire

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE - On June 24, 2007, the Angora Fire started at an illegal campfire at about 2:15 p.m. near North Upper Truckee Road in Meyers. The wind driven wildfire consumed 3,100 acres, destroyed 242 homes and 67 commercial structures, and damaged 35 other homes. As many as 2,180 firefighters battled the blaze with was 100% contained by July 2. There will be several community events to mark this tragic anniversary.

Thursday, June 22

9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Field trip observing burned areas of the Angora Fire. Bring your own lunch or purchase a brown bag lunch - optional $15 credit card payment with on-line registration. Meeting location: Lake Valley FPD, Station 7 - Administration Headquarters, 2211 Keetak St., South Lake Tahoe, CA 96150. Please arrive by 9:00 a.m.

5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. - Reception at Sdellis Brewery, 3350 Sandy Way, South Lake Tahoe, CA

Friday, June 23

9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. - Angor Fire Science Symposium at Lake Tahoe Community College's Aspen and Board Room. Registration is limited to 80 participants, bring your own lunch.

9:10-9:50 “Overview of the Angora Fire” – Kit Bailey, Fire Management Officer, Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, US Forest Service 9:50-10:30 “Defensible Space in the WUI” – John Pickett, Forester, Tahoe Douglas Fire Protection District

10:40 – 11:20 “Policy changes and outcomes resulting from the Angora Fire” – Mike Vollmer, Environmental Improvement Program Manager, Tahoe Regional Planning Agency 11:20 -`12:00 “Multi-jurisdictional coordination of fuel reduction and fire prevention” – Forest Schafer, North Lake Fire Protection District

1:40 – 2:20 “Scientific contributions of the Angora fire in the Sierra Nevada” – Hugh Safford, Regional Ecologist, Pacific Southwest Region, US Forest Service 2:20 – 2:40 “Avian and small mammal community responses to post-fire forest structure: implications for fire management in mixed conifer forests” – Angela White, Wildlife Biologist, Pacific Southwest Research Station, US Forest Service
2:40 – 3:00 “Forest development after the Angora fire – results of reforestation approaches” - Susan Kocher, Natural Resources Advisor, University of California Cooperative Extension

3:10 – 3:30 “Water quality response to the Angora Fire, Lake Tahoe, CA” - Alan Haeyvart, Associate Research Professor, Desert Research Institute, University of Nevada Reno 3:40 – 4:00 “Plant Community Response to the Angora Fire: The Effects of Fire Severity on Biodiversity” - Jonah Weeks, Graduate Student, Department of Environmental Science and Policy, UC Davis

Please call Susie Kocher at 530-542-2571 or sdkocher@ucanr.edu for questions or comments. Register here: http://cecentralsierra.ucanr.edu/Living_with_Wildfire/Angora_10_year_anniversary_/

Saturday, June 24

8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.: Angora Fire First Responder Remembrance Ceremony at Station 7. Lake Valley Fire Protection District is recognizing its firefighters, other agencie and first responders who had some part in fighting the Angora Fire. Station 7 is located at 2211 Keetak St. in Meyers.

Saturday, June 24

10:30 a.m. to Noon: Angora Commemoration in the Grand Hall at Valhalla. Local, state, and federal agency executives, fire chiefs, elected officials and others will gather to discuss the Angora Fire, Lessons learned, the fire's impact, the Meyers community and their recovery, and actions since that day, completed and still under way, meant to improve fire prevention and preparedness in the Lake Tahoe Basin.

Sunday, June 25

11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. The Lake Valley Fire Protection District is holding a Meyers Community Gathering at Tahoe Paradise Park. The event will mark the anniversary by focusing on the community’s healing and resiliency. For more information about this event, contact Perry Quinn at 530-559-4813. As part of the day’s activities, the Tahoe Network of Fire Adapted Communities has organized a workshop including an Angora fire time series photo display and formal presentation by UNR professor Peter Goin as well as a series of 15-minute talks about a variety of relevant topics such as fire adapted communities, defensible space landscaping, and evacuation planning. For more information about this workshop, contact Marybeth Donahoe at 530-543-1501 ext.114.