Tahoe Residents Return to Burned-Out Streets

Jul 01, 10:36 AM

Current Headlines: TAHOE, Calif. (AP) -- Evacuated residents were returning to their burned-out streets Saturday after a wildfire near Lake Tahoe destroyed more than 200 homes and charred 3,100 acres. Investigators said the blaze was started by an illegal campfire and was mostly contained.

Donna Deaton, an investigator for the U.S. Forest Service, said Friday the fire was built in a campfire-restricted area about a quarter-mile south of Seneca Pond, a popular recreation area south of Lake Tahoe. There were no suspects, she said.

Hundreds of firefighters were expected to head home Saturday after two previous days of mild winds allowed crews to surround the blaze, which officials said was 80 percent contained. The wildfire has displaced about 3,500 people.

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