Quotes from Angora Fire--summer 2007

These are unpublished quotes submitted to the Tahoe Mountain News that I gathered during the fire.

Plenty of people had and will continue to have plenty to say about the Angora Fire. Here’s what some have been saying:

• “Each fire has its own behavior, its own attitude. Contained and controlled are two different things.”
Michele Tanzi, safety officer with the Forest Service
She was keeping an eye on things along Highway 89 on June 27 as the fire was one-half mile from the road, burning just beyond the meadow. The fire was 100 percent contained July 2 and expected to be controlled a week later.

• “We left when it was about 10 yards from the back yard. It needed to be thinned. It was terrible forest mismanagement. It sure doesn’t look like it did yesterday. Animal Control has Blondie, our yellow Lab. I don’t know where the cat is. I can’t believe this community and how great they are. We went to St. Theresa’s and had breakfast this morning. Everyone is so supportive.”
Mark Anthenien, 52, 33-year Tahoe resident, with 11 on Gardner Street
Just before the family fled, his two teenage sons were making a fire break out back. They spent the night of June 26 with friends in Tahoe Keys, watching their mountain burn.

• “By the time I got up here it was like a ghost town. Those of us in the business just knew there would be a devastating fire.”
Brian Wilksin, 56, a 26-year resident of South Lake
The former Forest Service firefighter and CTC employee was in Sacramento on business when his Tahoe Island area neighborhood was put on notice. He arrived home the night of June 26. An unwrapped hose from Ace Hardware was on his passenger seat while driving through Gardner Mountain on June 27 to assess the damage.

• “When a public safety officer comes down your street and announces you must evacuate, don’t hesitate. Make your home fire safe. Make it defensible fire safe. It’s the law in California.”
California Lt. Gov. John Garamendi
The state’s former insurance commissioner talked more about insurance issues at a June 27 press conference than the current chief, Steve Poizner.

• “The scariest part is my girlfriend’s parents live on Tata (on Gardner Mountain). While we were getting their dog, the guy came down the street saying it was a mandatory evacuation.”
John Scobie, 38, of South Lake Tahoe
He lives in the Tahoe Island area. He had his Toyota packed on June 27 from having evacuated the night before. On that Wednesday he stood in the open area near the meadow along Venice Drive just staring at a smoldering Tahoe Mountain.

• “It spotted across the highway. It was spotting in people’s front yards. We are mopping up to make sure it’s cold and not hot at all.”
Dan Tiedemann, engineer with Plumas National Forest
He was filling up his Forest Service truck with water from a hydrant on Highway 89 on June 27 and talked about how the fire jumped the highway the day before and threatened one of the most populated areas of the South Shore.

• “It’s going to be different for a long time.”
Taylor Flynn, Gardner Street resident
The publisher of the Tahoe Mountain News watched the fire roar to his back fence on June 26. The forest he often mountain bikes in is now a wall of charcoal.

• “You’ll be surprised. A lot of these trees will do well.”
California Department of Forestry firefighter
He said this while mopping up the mess on Gardner Mountain June 27.

• “I’ve lived in the Lake Tahoe Basin for over two decades. My wife went to this high school.”
Stateline resident and Nevada Lt. Gov. Brian Krolicki
He was one of many officials to speak at a press conference at South Tahoe High School on June 27, but the only one with a true personal connection. The backdrop was the football field, with singed trees nearby and the smoke from the heart of the fire wafting skyward.

• “Homes can be rebuilt, but personal buildings can’t be replaced. The biggest mistake is fingerpointing. Everyone is working together. You need to prepare yourself for fire season.”
California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger
He spoke at a press conference on June 27 after touring the devastation of Tahoe Mountain and North Upper Truckee.

• “The 300-acre piece at the base of Tahoe Mountain in May is instrumental to us. It’s devastating seeing what we’ve been through. We would probably have seen double the losses (if the area hadn’t been cleared).”
Kit Bailey, fire chief of Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit of the USFS
He was talking about the fuel reduction efforts done this spring in the burned area.

• “It felt good to get back to work.”
Brian Gogue, employee of Cardinale Way, on July 1
He and his wife, Katrinia, a nurse at Barton Memorial Hospital, were both back at work within days of losing their house in the fire.

• “We have been working on fuels treatment and defensible space for decades. Do we need to change our rules? Maybe. We’ll look at our rules and the Forest Service will look at theirs to see how we protect the forest and the Lake.”
John Singlaub, executive director of the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency
He was given a chance to respond to questions at a press conference June 27, after being forced off the stage at a community meeting the night before when someone said “bulls---” as he tried to answer a question.

• "It's serious business. People will take what little you have left. You've had enough pain and don't need anymore."
El Dorado County Deputy DA Hans Uthe
He spoke at the June 29 community meeting about scam artists – people passing themselves off as insurance reps or contractors.

• “We recognize that there is a disconnect somewhere between our rules and the realities on the ground. We are currently working with partner agencies to determine how to speed up defensible space work in the Tahoe Basin and improve public education around tree removal regulations.”
Julie Regan, TRPA spokeswoman
This was in a press release sent out June 29. She did a segment with San Francisco’s KGO-radio talk show host Gene Burns during the week of the fire; discussing her agency’s role in the inferno.

• “It would be nice to spend $140 million on fuel reduction.”
South Lake Tahoe City Manager Dave Jinkens, June 27
He said this in reference to how much property damage has been caused by the fire and how perhaps more money for fuel reduction would have meant less for rebuilding.

• “We have been actively engaged in our urban lots. For the most part the federal lands within the county and city have been treated. It’s a never ending job. You keep cycling through.”
Kit Bailey, Forest Service fire chief LTBMU, June 27
In response to what can be can be done about public property next to residences.

• “Ten to 20 percent have canceled reservations for this weekend.”
Phil Weidinger, public relations specialist on June 27
He added that many people were calling in to see how things were going. His company along with the Lake Tahoe Visitors Agency went on a campaign to notify tourists exactly where the burn area is, that the fireworks would go on and how the town needs people to return.

• “The post office was evacuated. They are to be commended. Your mail is safe. For some folks (mail) may be all they have.”
Chuck Dickson, Forest Service spokesman at the June 27 public meeting
He was talking about the Tahoe Valley Post Office.

• “In our world 3,100 (acres) is small. In your world it is large. It’s the socio-economic reasons we’re here.”
Rich Hawkins, incident commander, June 27 public meeting
He said normally the amount of resources thrown at the Angora Fire would not have occurred in other locations. It has everything to do with the South Shore being a vital cog in the economic wheel of two states.

• “We haven’t lit a single backfire in the area.”
Rich Hawkins, incident commander, June 27 public meeting
He explained it was a “burn out” firefighters were doing on Gardner Mountain. This is like a dot-to-dot to link spot fires into one fire.

• “Because people want to live in the forests it opens them up to more risk. You need wind and fuels to have a crown fire.”
Yvonne Jones, Forest Service spokeswoman, June 25
She added she’s seen larger fires acreage-wise in the Tahoe area, but none that hit homes so hard.

• “We needed to make a declaration that this is a disaster area so funding is loosened up and aid is available to residents who lost their homes and businesses.”
Assemblyman Ted Gaines, R-Roseville at the airport command center June 25
He talked about how the area will be affected economically because tourism is the No. 1 business here.

• “I’ve lived her 47 years. Neighborhoods are in utter devastation. Was enough (fuels reduction) done before? No. We need to do more. This was a wake-up call.”
South Lake Tahoe Mayor Kathay Lovell on Day 2
She says money earmarked for clearing the forest of dead trees and thick brush is not making its way to Tahoe.

• “It is organized chaos. That’s what a disaster is.”
Julie Van Dooren, CEO of the Sacramento-Sierra Chapter of the Red Cross at the evacuation center set up at the city recreation center
Thirteen people stayed the first night of the fire, with another 200 in hotels. Those numbers increased as the days went on. The center has since closed down.

• “I was given a shopping list -- boys’ underwear.”
Casey Kaczmarek, 25, 2000 South Tahoe High graduate living in Sacramento
He and Jennifer Lukins came to town right after the fire started. They were dropping off supplies at the Red Cross center at the rec center and seeing what else they could do.

• “Travis Cabral was helping to get horses out of Amacker’s. My cousin moved 60-head of horses out of Camp Rich.”
Jennifer Lukins, 2000 STHS grad
She said she was getting goose bumps June 25 while naming the people she knew who were now homeless.

• “Thousands of animals have also lost their homes. They are displaced. Be patient with these animals.”
Cheryl Millham, executive director of Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care
She spoke at one of the community meetings.

• “Unfortunately a lot of people are sneaking into the fire area. Disaster tourists are coming from the Bay Area and Reno to look at the fire. It interferes with emergency operations. It’s unsafe.”
Rex Norman, spokesman LTBMU USFS
He said law enforcement was doing the best it could to keep people out who don’t belong.