California wildfires: Evening update for Caldor, Bridge and Dixie fires - Sept. 5, 2021

Our top story tonight. The firefight in the Sierra evacuation orders for South Lake Tahoe have been downgraded to evacuation warnings. Now here's a map showing all the evacuation orders and warnings in place because of the Caldor fire. The area is now classified as. Warnings go from the Nevada state line West along Hwy 50 to the Tahoe Airport. This is good news for the 22,000 residents who had to leave the area. Now take a look at this map. It shows where the fire is burning right now with the dark red dots. Showing the hot spots with more than 1/3 of the 334 square mile keldor fire surrounded authorities are also allowing more people back in their homes in the western and northern sides of the fires. Meanwhile, the fire is now up to more than 215 thousand acres burned containment up to 43%. It started three weeks ago. Now in El Dorado County and has since burned into Amador County as well. More than 920 structures destroyed dozens more damaged. Now that evacuation orders have been downgraded to warnings, this gives evacuees the green light to return home. C10 Sebastian Robertson joins us live in South Lake Tahoe. It's Sebastian spoke to people who are on their way back after being evacuated about a week ago. Sebastian. Well, behind me there used to be a National Guard checkpoint that is gone. Residents are being allowed home under that warning order. The evacuation order downgraded. It's a sign that the tide may be changing in the fight against this fire, but from the front lines there's still plenty of work. It's not the Labor Day traffic. South Lake Tahoe is used to, but it's the green light that thousands of people displaced by the Caldor fire have been waiting for. Donna Bass is ready to go home safe. I'm safe, I know, I know her. OK, and if we're not, we gotta go again. This is the way, it's the way it's going to be. Cautiously optimistic as the Caldor fire continues to spread due South of Lake Tahoe, a fire that's now in its third week, displacing wildlife and forcing the evacuation of thousands. And there's still plenty of work to do. Many of the places where orders have been lifted, they're still warning areas, so we still advise people to keep your pack in your car, ready to go, because this fire is unpredictable. Cal Fire reports progress, but flames still challenge handcrews. Some 6000 feet above sea level, the work is relentless by midafternoon. Air support is constant helicopters working to slow the spread because water alone won't stop these flames. And then there's the work that's not so obvious. Brian Gungor along time Caltrans employee is taking down trees damaged by the fire before they have a chance to fall on their own. While we're doing is out to preserving the safety for the traveling public, as far as the deoti goes, yeah Sunday night, each car that passes is a sign that their efforts are paying off. When I got the text on my phone through the Eldorado County through red Code red and stuff and it was like Oh my God, I get to go home. I get to 'cause I felt like I felt like ET. The last. Six days families that can now spend the holiday at home while just a few miles away. The work continues. And tonight, fire officials with a message to those families that choose to return home. Under this warning, they're asking them to do so with a full tank of gas and plenty of food because they feel it may take some time for all stores to open back up some great news. Thank you, Sebastian. Meanwhile, crews are busy with a fire burning in Plaster county. This one broke out around 2:00 this afternoon. This is video Cal Fire took of the flames shortly after it broke out. Cal Fire says the fire is. Burning on both sides of Forest Hill Rd under the Forest Hill Bridge, Forest Hill Road, is closed in both directions. It's burned about 250 acres. No word yet on the cause. Now here is an evacuation map showing about 500 people who have been evacuated because of that bridge fire. You could see the area in red is under a mandatory evacuation. People affected had to leave the Lake Clementine area. Other areas in yellow or under an evacuation order, and we find ABC 10s van to live near Forest Hill Bridge and Plaster County where all this is happening, Ben. But can you tell us right now? Welker at the top of the hour. Cal Fire officials did confirm that the bridge fire 0% contained at 250 acres since it broke out at around 1:00 o'clock somewhere again below the Forest Hill Bridge and I want to go ahead and throw to video of what it looked like at the bridge as we were driving through it earlier this evening. What you should be seeing now. Fire burning on both sides of Forest Hill Road after it made a run up from the river and spotted over the roadways. But what we saw what we're dealing with dry vegetation, fuels that really burn in a flash and other areas of thick brush and timber that send up that dark smoke that could be seen for miles. So this fire growing rapidly with mid to long range, spotting east of the fire. So crews say that their containment goal right now is at Forest Hill and Old Forest Hill Roads, which as you mentioned court are both closed. Cruise wants to keep the fire. Rest of that point and right now there are no evacuation warnings or even orders that have been called for the. Forest Hill community. Though again, those roads that lead to Forest Hill are closed. Now a tremendous amount of resources, including 13 aircraft deployed to this fire today, which those aircraft had been dipping in the Middle Fork American River when the Sun was up. But it is, and it's still going to be a long night for ground crews, but Cal Fire officials tell me that they are planning to take advantage of down Canyon winds tonight. That will actually be helpful to us will strengthen these these areas around the heel to prevent it from progressing back to the West, but we really need that down Canyon win to help us with containment on that East End. Now, Kurt, we do know that about 500 people were evacuated from that mandatory zone and the Lake Clementine area, and we actually did see Plaster County Sheriff deputies lead those people out of harm's way and they were driving down the road here. Now I did get a chance to ask Cal Fire officials given the history of trespassing under the bridge and also the amount of trails in the area whether or not there was any indication that this was human caused. Now the Cal Fire chief. Tells me that it is too soon to tell, but does note that this was indeed a very busy holiday weekend, but too early to determine any sort of cause. Kurt alright, our band two live in Plaster County. Thanks for the update van. Let's turn it over to Monica with an update on the heat and it's going to get a little warmer. Is it right now all this going on in the background? We had extreme heat going on for today with temperatures upwards of 100 degrees. Fairfield 105. Four today low to mid 90s for the Foothills, 80s up top for the Sierra cooling nicely for tonight, so his van Schmundt was mentioning. The firefighters are going to take the opportunity tonight with cooler temperatures than those winds that move down Canyon. That's always a better situation, especially as we head through the evening with slightly higher humidity. A little bit of haze in the air for tonight. We've got those southwest winds that will continue becoming calm as we head towards tomorrow morning, with readings generally in the 50s and 60s. And so we're going to see a bit of that haze redeveloped for tomorrow morning throughout the valley. And then it clears nicely once we pick up those very light southwest winds are not terribly strong for Labor Day day, actually. Going to find highs in the 100's for the valley 90s for the Foothills Sierra 80s seventies for the Bay Area. With this heat advice, we're going into place on Tuesday, so we even have hotter temperatures ahead in the 10 day forecast. That's right Tuesday and Wednesday near record highs before we start to cool things down. Kurt, alright. Thank you Monica. North of the Caldor fire. Good progress. Made on the Dixie Fire. The 890,000 acre fire is now 56% contained. It's burning in Butte to Hema? Plumas, Shasta and Lassen counties. Multiple evacuation orders and warnings have been lifted. If you'd like to help in any way you can. Many families are impacted by the wildfires. Of course, ABC Tennis teamed up with the American Red Cross. If you are able to donate, you can find the link on our website. Go to abc10.com/link.