Two U.S. Forest service firefighters are uninjured after surviving being burned over this afternoon fighting the Angora fire, said Chuck Dickson, lead information officer with Management Team I, stationed at Heavenly Valley.
Dickson said the two firefighters deployed their emergency shelters, but were able to walk out after the fire burned over. The two where checked out at the hospital and are unhurt.
The two firefighters were part of a group working to protect the Tallac Village development in South Lake Tahoe when the wind picked up and sent the backfire swooping down on them, Dickson said.
The spot fire has erupted at the fire will amount to several hundred acres, Dickson said in a television interview.
He said today's turning point came when winds picked up this afternoon.
"I was looking at the weather forecast that called for light winds," he said. "Then an hour later the winds came up. It's tricky to predict those winds."
Dickson said the El Dorado Sheriff's department said the evacuation is going well. He said as many as 500 homes, 2,000 residents are affected by the most recent evacuations.
He said he is unsure if the reports of a structure fire near South Tahoe High School is related to the Angora fire or if it was a typical structure fire.
KOLO TV is reporting that fire officials believe they have determined the cause of the fire but are awaiting further confirmation until releasing it to the media.
