Meyers

4:15 P.M. UPDATE: Road controls are back in place, along with closure of I-80 at the Nevada/California state line due to a 25-car pile-up.

Traffic on Highway 50 over Echo Summit is still slow moving with the back up for westbound travel backed up near the intersection of Hwy 50 and 89 at the Y.

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1:15 P.M. UPDATE: Many chain controls have been lifted throughout the Tahoe basin and passes. Check ahead at Caltrans Road Info.

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An overturned vehicle near Strawberry is creating a holiday traffic jam over Highway 50 today. Eastbound lanes are blocked at Mile Marker 41.

The California Highway Patrol is reporting no injuries in the accident which was reported at 11:49 a.m. Tow trucks just arrived at 12:30 p.m. and are getting the vehicle out of the roadway.

Traffic through Meyers has been reported as heavy all day, which is normal after a holiday weekend in Lake Tahoe, but several drivers have said they haven't moved in over 30 minutes.

The ski resorts are welcoming new snow as a storm that passed through left behind up to 15 inches of it behind on the slopes. Crews are cleaning up the roads around the lake with many controls in place.

There is an avalanche warning for slopes steeper than 30 degrees. Human triggered avalanches are likely and natural avalanches are possible according to the National Weather Service.

As of 9 a.m., chain controls are up on Highway 50 over Echo Summit, requiring all cars to have chains unless 4WD with snow tires on all four wheels from 3 miles east of Kyburz to Meyers.

The snow in South Lake Tahoe on Thursday started almost exactly at the time the winter weather advisory said it would: 2 p.m. The advisory is in effect until 10:00 a.m. Friday, January 15.

Chain controls are up on all mountain roads around Lake Tahoe, and with 3-5" snow expected during the evening, expect them to stay up all night.

Chain controls as of 4:30 p.m. Thursday:

Kingsbury Grade - Chains or snow tires
Spooner Summit / Hwy 50 - Chains or snow tires
Echo Summit / Hwy 50 - Chains or 4WD with snow tires from 1.5 miles west of Kyburz to Meyers

The El Dorado County Board of Education has promoted one of its own to the top job, one that has been vacant since the November, 2015 resignation of Jeremy Meyers.

Dr. Ed Manansala became the new superintendent Tuesday, moving up from his position as Deputy Superintendent of Educational Services, one he'd held since June of 2013.

People at Lake Tahoe are working together like never before to restore our environment, revitalize our economy, and improve our communities. We saw significant progress all around the lake this year. And our progress is sustainable with continued partnership and collaboration, so critical to tackle the many challenges and important decisions on our horizon.

3:20 p.m. update 12/13/15: Chains controls have expanded. Chains are required on all vehicles except 4WD with snow tires from 9 miles east of Placerville to 3 miles east of Pollock Pines, then snow tires or chains until 5 miles east of Kyburz where it is chains or 4WD with snow tires to Meyers.

Chains or snow tires around the lake including Spooner Summit and Kingsbury Grade.

I80 is chains or 4WD with snow tires from Nyack to Truckee. Trucks are being screened at Applegate and Nevada State Line for maximum chains in possession and permit loads are prohibited.

A fallen tree in the middle of the forest early Friday morning led to 3,500 Liberty Utilities customers being without power for several hours.

At 1:50 a.m. it was reported that power was cut off to the homes. Crews had to snowshoe into the forest to find out what the problem was, which turned out to be a tree fallen on a power line. They were able to bypass the system and get power up to about 3,100 customers by 9 a.m.

With a forecast for the Sierra of a significant snowfall over both Donner Summit and Echo Summit, Caltrans issued a statement for motorists to take caution and to alert drivers of tools at their disposal to help them on their trip.

High winds are predicted with heavy snow, creating the potential for white-outs and even blizzard conditions on summit passes between Wednesday night and Friday morning.

Deputies from the El Dorado County Sheriff's Office were called out to the neighborhood of Minniconiou and Susquehana Drives on Wednesday morning to reports an aggressive 700-800 pound bear.

The bear had reportedly been disrupting the neighborhood for several weeks by breaking into multiple residences.

Deputies located the bear and attempted to get the bear to move away from the residential area, using loud noises and less lethal bean bag rounds. In most cases these types of tactics are very successful and result in the bear leaving the area.

North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District, the Nevada Division of Forestry and the U.S. Forest Service will continue widespread prescribed fire operations beginning the week of November 30, 2015.

Operations are planned for the following areas:

57 acres on urban lots on the west side of Incline Village. Smoke expected to travel North/Northeast/East.

28 acres off Fairway Drive near Tahoe City. Smoke expected to travel North/Northeast/East.

105 acres in Lake Tahoe Nevada State Park north of Spooner Lake. Smoked expected to travel Northeast.

Shoppers buying locally in South Lake Tahoe between November 28 and January 1 might be taking home more than a gift for someone on their list this season.

"Go Local and Win" is a campaign by the Tahoe Chamber to encourage people to shop in town and not off the hill. By doing so, not only will they support local businesses, they can also win prizes each week.

Just as predicted, snow started falling in South Lake Tahoe at noon on Tuesday.

The attached photo is from the Caltrans camera located at Twin Bridges at 12:30 p.m., giving people an idea of what is on the way.

As of 12:30 p.m. on November 24, the following road controls are in place:
From Meyers to 3 miles east of Kyburz on Highway 50, chains are required on all vehicles except or 4WD with snow tires.

Northbound on Hwy 89 from north of Camp Richardson along the west shore to Truckee, Chains are required except on 4WD with snow tires.

This past summer was Lake Tahoe’s busiest tourist season in recent memory. With the economy rebounding and major population growth projected for nearby metropolitan areas, this summer is also a harbinger of change. We must be prepared to meet the challenges of increased visitation in the future.

The snow forecast for Monday night arrived this morning in South Lake Tahoe, prompting morning commute road controls and school news.

All Lake Tahoe Unified Schools are open with no delays Tuesday morning,

Douglas County schools at the lake are "main bus stops only."

The Douglas County bus stops are designated as:

The corner of Tina Court and Ski Court for students living in the Tramway and Kingsbury Village area:

WHS - Bus will arrive at 6:35 a.m. and depart at 6:57 a.m.
ZCES - Bus will arrive at 7:55 a.m. and depart at 8:22 a.m.

Lake Tahoe author Jennifer Quashnick will be launching her newest book "Sierra Nevada River of Lies" at Bonafide Books in Meyers on November 7 from 4:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Her newest book is the second one in Quashnick's Mountaingirl series which was started off by "Sierra Nevada Trail of Murder."

A description of the newest story: An offer to help someone in need leaves Rachel Winters and her friends in the killer’s sights as they slowly unravel a multi-layered scheme for profit. Meanwhile, a discovery about Luke Reed’s long-lost family threatens them both.

Some have jobs. Some have families. Some are recent high school graduates. Some are retired military. Some are college graduates. They are all future firefighters.

One month into the new school year, 33 men and women are part of the tenth class of firefighters being trained at the Lake Tahoe Community College's program, the Lake Tahoe Basin Fire Academy. This year's class started with 36 students, but some find out early on how physically demanding the program is and they find it isn't for them.

The Lake Valley Fire Protection District announced the swearing in of new Apprentice
Firefighter-Paramedic, Dylan Yuzbick, was given the oath of office by Board President Dave Huber and was welcomed to the District during their October 8 board meeting.

Expect to see smoke in the Christmas Valley and Meyers areas of the South Shore as the U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit begins prescribed fire operations on Saturday, October 17. They plan to start the season by burning 122 acres of hand piles near Grass Lake Road off southbound Highway 89. They will continue on the project over the next several weeks as conditions allow.

Expect to see smoke travel in a north/northeast direction.

Get ready for Tahoe WordWave, a literary event the likes of which has never before been seen in South Lake Tahoe, and the rest of the country is taking note.

Modeled after San Francisco's LitQuake, organizers of Tahoe WordWave have gathered creative and inspiring writers, musicians, and performers from around the country to share their talents over a three day experience at Tallac Historic Site. The festival will be interactive, featuring readings, workshops, plays, open mics, guided hikes, and oral storytelling.

Seven of the eight candidates for the four open seats of the Tahoe Paradise Resort Improvement District (TPRID) Board of Directors were at Thursday's meeting and candidate's forum. The election will be held on November 3.

Vying for the two seats with a two-year term are Jan Roman-Gonzales, incumbent Joseph Cardinale, incumbent Peter Nelligan and Frank Jones.

Candidates for the two seats with a four-year term are incumbent Victor Babbitt, incumbent Judy Klot, Diane Verwoest and Brandi Jordan-Griffith.

Jordan-Griffith did not attend the forum due to a case of the flu.

There are eight people vying for the four open positions on the Tahoe Paradise Resort Improvement District (TPRID) Board of Directors, and the public will be able to watch them in action during a candidate's forum on Thursday.

TPRID, formed in 1965, governs Lake Baron and the surrounding park in the Tahoe Paradise neighborhood of Meyers.

Several South Lake Tahoe projects were awarded this week by the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) as being the "Best in the Basin" for demonstrating exceptional planning, design, and compatibility with Lake Tahoe’s environment and communities.

The projects that were recognized upgraded highways, built new bike trails, improved water quality, restored environmentally-sensitive areas, remodeled blighted commercial buildings, and created defensible space for better wildfire protection.

The Best in the Basin award winners are:

"I'm usually a bass fisherman," explained 11-year-old Casey Holden. "I only fish for trout during this derby."

The sixth grader from Fairfield-Suisun Valley Elementary had the catch of the day on Sunday during the 14th annual Moose Lodge Fishing Derby held at Lake Baron inside Tahoe Paradise Park. The first fish he reeled in was 3 lbs 7 oz after about 90 minutes of fishing. As soon as he got that one off the hook he cast another line and within a minute caught the one that ended up being the biggest of the day, a 7 lb 5 oz rainbow trout.