They didn't know if they'd be lucky again. The two-bedroom they've owned for 40 years survived the Angora Fire that destroyed about 250 houses in 2007. Tom O'Connell and his wife, Linda, awaited the fate of their home while anchored on their sailboat in Ventura Harbor. But nearly everyone worried Tuesday about what the fire would do next. South Lake Tahoe city officials said only a handful of residents defied Monday’s evacuation order. The #CaldorFire continues to grow, spotting in to subdivisions around Meyers and the Apache Ave. The blaze was 3 miles (5 kilometers) outside of South Lake Tahoe by Tuesday afternoon, Cal Fire Battalion Chief Henry Herrera told KGO-TV. He said embers were being cast up to a mile out in front of the fire, creating new ignition points, including in some parts of the dense forest that haven't burned since 1940 or before. “With those winds, as it ran through the forest it created what’s called an active crown fire run, where the fire actually goes from treetop to treetop,” said Stephen Vollmer, a fire behavior analyst for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The National Weather Service warned that critical weather conditions through Wednesday could include extremely low humidity, dry fuel and gusts up to 30 mph (48 kph). Thick smoke from the Caldor fire enveloped the city of South Lake Tahoe, which was all but deserted during a summer week usually bustling with tourists. SOUTH LAKE TAHOE - Flames raced across treetops and through drought-stricken vegetation as firefighters scrambled Wednesday to keep a growing California wildfire from reaching a resort city at the southern tip of Lake Tahoe after evacuation orders were expanded to neighboring Nevada. Source: California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, California Office of Emergency Services. Another 40 have been recorded as damaged. At least 669 structures have been reported as destroyed, including 486 homes, though the count is ongoing as conditions allow assessments. More than 400 fire engines are on the fire, nearly 100 bulldozers and over 70 water hauling tenders. Numerous airplane tankers are assisting when smoky conditions allow them to fly. About 25 helicopters are dropping water and retardant on the Caldor fire. But states across the country are stretched for resources as many rescue personnel have been sent to help with Hurricane Ida recovery. In all, 15,000 fire personnel are working on fires statewide, including the still-burning Dixie fire. Army was also training about 250 soldiers to work as hand crews, who typically hike into wildland fire areas and remove rocks, leaves, bushes and other flammable material using shovels and chainsaws. There are more than 3,900 personnel on the lines, with firefighters coming from as far away as Wisconsin and West Virginia to aid the firefight. 14 near the community of Grizzly Flats, about 35 miles (56 kilometers) from Lake Tahoe, had ballooned to 312 square miles (808 square kilometers) by Tuesday night. The Caldor fire, named for the road where it started on Aug. Facts about the wildfire threatening communities around Lake Tahoe at the California-Nevada border:
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