Markleeville, CA…Special Notes: Residents returning to their homes following evacuations should be aware that there may still be fire activity nearby. Smoke and possible isolated flare-ups may occur for several weeks within the fire area as the fire burns through isolated fuels such as dead or downed trees. There is still firefighting work being done in many areas. Use caution on roadways, as firefighting vehicles will also be sharing the roads.

Grover Hot Springs State Park remains closed to the public due to the impacts from the Tamarack Fire.

Current Situation:

A change in the weather brought much-needed moisture onto the fire area yesterday. A group of afternoon thundershowers dropped heavy rain onto some sections of the fire. Last night steady rainfall covered the entire fire area.

Firefighters yesterday made more progress securing the fire perimeter. Containment is now at 54%. Evacuations were lifted for the Blue Lakes area, Holbrook Junction/Highlands and Spring Valley. The only remaining evacuations are for people living in the SR 4 corridor from Hwy 89 to Ebbetts and Burnside Lake area.

Road Closures: Hwy 89 is closed between Hwy 88 and Hwy 395 to all traffic except local residents and incident personnel. Hwy 4 is closed throughout the fire area to all traffic except incident personnel.

Branch I: Division K Firefighters finished mopping up hot spots in Spring Valley yesterday. Mopping up is when firefighters extinguish or remove burning material near control lines and take other actions to make an area safe. Today crews will patrol the edge and be ready to respond if lightning from potential storms ignites any new fires.

Division O After several days of work on the fire’s edge, hand crews were successful in containing the northeast corner of the slopover fire that crossed Hwy 395 last week. Firefighters also secured a section south of Holbrook. The entire east side of the fire is now contained. Today crews will mop up hot spots in the Holbrook area. Structure protection crews will continue to patrol communities along the 395 corridor.

Branch II: Division Q New containment was added yesterday stretching from the southeast corner of the fire west to just below Leviathan Peak. Crews worked from there to establish new line, getting support from helicopters that dropped water to cool the fire’s edge. Today firefighters will continue their direct attack and work the fire towards the Leviathan Mine.

Division T is now fully staffed with crews and heavy equipment, looking to directly engage the fire where possible to safely do so. Yesterday firefighters scouted and began work on new fireline. The effort continues today.

Division A is adding a second wildland module of firefighters today. The fire is burning in steep, rugged, scattered fuels. Supervisors will continue to look for opportunities to engage the fire while limiting risk to firefighters.

Branch III: Division F Firefighters secured two more sections of line yesterday. The western edge of the fire is now contained from Burnside Lake north to Crystal Springs. Today crews will patrol the area looking for any hot spots. They will also help with structure protection in nearby communities.

Weather & Fuel Conditions:

Today will be cooler and windier with higher winds in the afternoon and another chance for thunderstorms. High temperatures will range from 71-83 degrees over the fire area. Fire activity will be moderate in the morning because of yesterday’s rain, but fuels will dry out quickly.

Temporary Flight Restriction (TRF):

TFR violations can disrupt aerial firefighting operations and may force fire managers to ground essential aircraft. Wildfires are a no-fly zone for unauthorized aircraft, including drones. If you fly, we can’t. For more information, visit http://knowbeforeyoufly.org.

Evacuations, Closures, and Fire Restrictions:

For evacuation notice specifics in Alpine and Douglas Counties visit:
https://www.alpinecountyca.gov/AlertCenter.aspx?AID=EVACUATION-INFORMATION-53 and

https://www.douglascountynv.gov/government/departments/emergency_management/current_emergencies/tamarack_fire__markleeville__c_a

For road closure specifics visit https://roads.dot.ca.gov/ and https://nvroads.com/.

For closures and fire restrictions on National Forest lands, visit

https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/htnf/alerts-1069notices/?cid=fseprd573309

Tamarack Fire Statistics:

Size: 68,103 acres

Containment: 54%

Total Personnel: 1,505

Location: Markleeville, CA

Reported: July 4, 2021

Cause: Lightning

For More Information:
Public Information Phone: 775-434-8629
Public email: 2021.tamarack@firenet.gov
Media Phone: 775-434-8110
Media email: mediatamarack@gmail.com
InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/7674/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/tamarackfireinfo
Twitter: https://twitter.com/tamarack_fire
Youtube: https://bit.ly/TamarackVideo

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Incident Information