View the full image Night view of fire at Caples Creek from Alert Tahoe fire camera at 9:00 pm

The Caples Creek prescribed burn that has been sending smoke into the Lake Tahoe Basin and Carson Valley all week has turned into a wildland fire.

On October 10 at approximately 1:30 p.m., fire managers made the decision due to unfavorable weather conditions and the inability to meet previously established objectives. This change allows for additional resources to assist in suppression from partners such as CalFire.

The Caples prescribed burn began as pile burning 10 days ago under favorable conditions following rain and snowstorms. This is part of a larger, multi-year forest restoration project. The goal of this project is to promote a healthy resilient forest by reintroducing fire to the landscape.

In anticipation of the upcoming strong winds, fire managers began building a fire line and conducting firing operations to secure the fire perimeter. Unfavorable conditions over the past few days prevented crews from being able to complete the firing operations contributed to the incident being declared a wildland fire.

On Wednesday, the Eldorado National Forest had announced two engines, one water tender, and one hotshot crew had remained on-site to continue to hold the fire perimeter and to mop up.

Inciweb has been down Thursday evening, with current facts unable to be recorded.

Now that it is back up, the forest service reports that 152 firefighters are on-site and 2,143 acres have burned so far.

The public is asked to avoid the fire area as firefighters and equipment are working to contain the fire. The fire is burning on the northern ridge above Caples Creek, north of Highway 88.

For more information, please visit the Caples incident on Inciweb, the Eldorado National Forest’s Facebook and Twitter accounts.