The wildfire that destroyed at least 254 homes south of Lake Tahoe was 100 percent contained Monday morning, fire officials said.
Hundreds of firefighters were heading home Monday, with no more than 200 expected to remain by evening " down from more than 2,000 at the fire's peak, said Scott Swanson, a fire information officer.
Environmental teams were moving into the fire-damaged forest to figure out how to minimize erosion into the crystal-blue waters of the lake, Swanson said.
Nearly all mandatory evacuation orders and road closures have been lifted, but all national forest land within the 3,100-acre fire perimeter was being closed to the public because of danger posed by falling trees, officials said.
A U.S. Forest Service investigation identified the cause of the destructive blaze as an illegal campfire built in a campfire-restricted area, authorities said. Officials said there was no evidence it was deliberately set to spark the devastating wildfire that has displaced about 3,500 people.
