Tahoe blaze burns, threatens hundreds of homes
• Sheriff's department: Almost 500 firefighters have been called in to battle blaze
• Woman at roadblock tells paper she left her dog at home, fears for its safety
• Officials: 2,500 acres consumed in blaze, which is less than 5 percent contained
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, California (CNN) -- Firefighters emboldened by improving weather began an aggressive campaign from the ground and air Monday to battle a 2,500-acre blaze raging near South Lake Tahoe, officials said.
Fire crews said earlier they were hoping for a morning lull in the winds that have been fanning the wildfire across northeastern California, where it has scorched more than 220 homes and other buildings, authorities said.
No deaths or injuries were reported.
Daniel Berlant of the California Department of Forestry said more than 600 firefighters have been called in to battle the blaze near South Lake Tahoe, a town of about 23,600 people located 30 miles southwest of Carson City, Nevada. (Watch how the Lake Tahoe fire is being called "the worst in years" )
Lt. Kevin House, an El Dorado County sheriff's spokesman, said the fire is "the biggest disaster that's happened to this community in, I don't know, probably forever."
Though a U.S. Forest Service information officer said early Monday that the cause of the blaze was unknown but "suspicious," spokesman Matt Mathes said later Monday that the fire was definitely caused by humans. However, it isn't known whether the blaze was sparked deliberately or accidentally, he said.
Already, at least 1,000 people have been forced to flee their homes, and in addition to the scores of buildings singed in the blaze, another 500 homes stand in the wildfire's path, House said.
"It's just devastation," House said. "It's the worst I've ever seen it."
Roads were closed throughout the area, according to the Tahoe Daily Tribune. Resident Carla Ennis sat in her car crying at one of the checkpoints near her home. She told the newspaper that she left her dog at home and feared for its safety.
"I can't get to my house," she told the newspaper as a police officer gestured for her to move back.
Jordan Morgenstern, who went to the wildfire before fire crews arrived so he could film the blaze for an Internet outfit, told the Tribune that the smoke was so thick he became disoriented.
"The trees were going up like spirals. The sound was like a freight train," he told the newspaper. "It was black and intense."
For other residents in the area, the sense of danger was more palpable.
"I can't stay on the phone. We just got a notice to evacuate," Gloria Hildinger of the Angora Lakes Resort said when contacted by The Associated Press. "The smoke is getting pretty thick. It's probably two miles away and we're hoping it won't reach here." (Watch how the blaze forced evacuations at a popular resort )
A respite in the gusts that have been whipping the wildfire will allow firefighters to use aircraft to dump flame-retarding chemicals on to the blaze, burning just a few miles west of the California-Nevada state line, House said.
Gusts of up to 30 mph were reported in the area Sunday, according to the National Weather Service. House said the winds prevented fire officials from using aircraft to fight the blaze, but the weather service reported that wind speeds early Monday morning were about 5 mph.
Berlant pointed out that Sunday night brought cooler temperatures and an increase in humidity, which will help tame the blaze.
The fire, which House said was less than 5 percent contained, prompted the National Weather Service to issue a dense smoke advisory from South Lake Tahoe to western Nevada on Monday morning. The weather service said it issues such advisories when smoke reduces visibility, making it difficult to see and breathe.
"Persons in the advisory area should avoid prolonged exposure to the smoke and stay indoors," said the advisory, which is in effect until 11 a.m. local time (2 p.m. ET).
The blaze erupted near Angora Lake, south of Lake Tahoe, and quickly grew. At one point, the blaze spread from 700 acres to 2,000 in the span of three hours, Capt. Scott Swift of the Lake Valley Fire Protection District told the Los Angeles Times. (See the wildfire's hot spots)
Many of the 1,000 residents forced to flee the fire did so on foot -- taking only the possessions they could carry -- as the blaze gobbled up cars, homes and anything else in its way, Berlant said.
The fire is raging in a popular tourist area, and many of the structures are summer or vacation homes, though there are many permanent residences.
