El Dorado County Local News: Public Safety


All Local Public Safety News articles contributed by our local media allies and other local newsrooms.

Image caption: Many of Robert Kerbeck’s neighbors in Malibu Park lost their homes in the 2018 Woolsey Fire, which left behind lots where only chimneys still stood.
Give Your Home a Fighting Chance in a Wildfire

California wildfires are becoming larger, more frequent and more ferocious. ‘Malibu Burning’ author Robert Kerbeck shares simple steps you can take to protect your home.

Image caption: With CERT training, volunteers can learn firefighting skills.
Emergency Teamwork

Fires, floods, earthquakes—California’s got it all. And CERT volunteers are ready to step in.

Image caption: Thousands of homeowners have been kicked off their fire insurance policies.
California Fire Insurance Crisis: How the State Helps Homeowners

As California insurance companies have revoked the fire policies of thousands of homeowners, the state has taken steps to get them covered again.

Image caption: Though it’s the most famous, the San Andreas Fault is just one of more than 500 active faults in California.
Battening Down for the Big One

Making it through the earthquake is the easy part. The hard part is surviving in the chaos that follows.

Image caption: Supercell storms are just one of many weather phenomena in the era of climate change.
The New Vocabulary of the Climate Change Era

The climate change era has created a whole new set of terms for a wide variety of storms and other weather phenomena. Here are some of the most important.

Image caption:
How Not to Feel the Burn

California residents can turn to these public and private entities to help prepare for wildfires and protect their property.

Image caption: There are more than 300 community service districts in California.
Community Services Districts, Explained

Community service districts can do most anything a city government can do. Here’s how they work and how to start one.

Image caption: Mosquitos kill about 725,000 people every year, worldwide.
Taking a Bite Out of the Mosquito Population

The pesky mosquito can be deadly as well as annoying. Here’s how local governments in California have been waging war on mosquitoes for more than a century.

Image caption: California will soon be getting a new hotline number as an alternative to 911 for mental health crises.
988, the New Mental Health Emergency Number, Explained

California will soon add a new emergency hotline service with the number 988. Here’s the story behind that new service, and the original 911 number.

Image caption: States have expansive powers to protect the health of the general public.
The State’s Broad Power to Protect Public Health, Explained

Since long before the COVID-19 pandemic, states have possessed broad authority to protect public health, even to suspend laws and commandeer private property. Here’s why, and how it works.

Image caption: A Pyrocumulus cloud generated by the Dixie Fire in July, 2021.
What is Fire 'Containment?' That and Other Terms, Explained

What does it mean when firefighters call a fire "contained?" Here's a brief guide to commonly used fire prevention terminology.

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

07/25/2024
After years of delay, a new California regulation to protect indoor workers from extreme heat is now in effect.

Tahoe Daily Tribune logo From Tahoe Daily Tribune...

07/24/2024
Image for display with article titled Forest Thinning Projects Underway at Lake Tahoe

Tahoe Fire & Fuels Team forest thinning projects are underway in the Lake Tahoe Basin. These projects are expected to continue for the next several weeks with some projects continuing through the fall, conditions and weather permitting.

Tahoe Daily Tribune logo From Tahoe Daily Tribune...

07/22/2024
Image for display with article titled Homewood to Begin Major Forest Health Project This Summer

Homewood Mountain Resort is prepping to start its Hazardous Fuels Reduction Project after the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency Governing Board unanimously approved it earlier this summer.

California Local Pin Marker From Georgetown Gazette...

07/18/2024
The 60 year old metal roof on the historic International Order of Odd Fellows roof was repaired after coming lose over the winter.

Tahoe Daily Tribune logo From Tahoe Daily Tribune...

07/16/2024
Image for display with article titled No Harmful Algal Bloom Detected at Lake Tahoe Sites Purported to Be Responsible for Dog’s Death

The agencies that sampled water at El Dorado Beach and Nevada Beach last week have detected no toxins associated with harmful algal blooms in the lake. These are sites viral social media posts purported could be where a dog ingested harmful cyanobacteria and later died.

Tahoe Daily Tribune logo From Tahoe Daily Tribune...

07/16/2024
Image for display with article titled Forest Restoration and Fuels Reduction Treatment Map Highlights Tahoe Fire & Fuels Team Accomplishments

In collaboration with the Tahoe Fire & Fuels Team, the Tahoe Resource Conservation District announced the Forest Vegetation Interactive Map that highlights forest restoration and fuels reduction treatment accomplishments of the TFFT and the Lake Tahoe Environmental Improvement Program (EIP).

Tahoe Guide logo From Tahoe Guide...

07/15/2024
Image for display with article titled Defend Your Space With Fire Guide

Tahoe Fire & Fuels Team reminds homeowners of the importance of creating and maintaining defensible space. University of Nevada, Reno Extension’s Living With Fire Program published a new Living With Fire Defensible Space Guide on how to keep resident spaces safe.

California Local Pin Marker From Georgetown Gazette...

07/10/2024
A five week workshop with information for landowners affected by wildfire is being offered by the the University of California Forest Stewardship program team from July 16 through August 6. Sessions are once a week over Zoom.

California Local Pin Marker From Mountain Democrat...

07/10/2024
Completion of a fiber-to-the-home broadband Internet project was announced by the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians and technology partner Cal.net.

Folsom Times logo From Folsom Times...

07/09/2024
Image for display with article titled Firefighters Halt Intense Vehicle, Vegetation Fire Near Bass Lake Road

A quick response by two different fire agencies prevented a fire from getting out of hand late Monday night in El Dorado Hills. 

Folsom Times logo From Folsom Times...

07/06/2024
Image for display with article titled Fire Forces Evacuations Near Placerville Saturday Afternoon

Some residents in El Dorado County were being ordered to evacuate while others received evacuation orders Saturday afternoon after a vegetation fire broke out in Placerville that is threatening several homes.

Folsom Times logo From Folsom Times...

07/05/2024
Image for display with article titled Folsom Firefighters Snuff Early Morning  Eagle Ridge Fire

Folsom firefighters swiftly contained a grass fire that broke out in the early morning of July 5 near a residential area in the city.

Folsom Times logo From Folsom Times...

07/04/2024
Image for display with article titled Folsom Firefighters Make Quick Work of Silberhorn Dr. Fire

A fast response by Folsom firefighters stopped the forward progress of a quickly moving vegetation fire that initially threatened structures in a Folsom neighborhood on the afternoon of July 4.

Tahoe Daily Tribune logo From Tahoe Daily Tribune...

07/04/2024
Image for display with article titled Bear Experts Offer Tips for Camping in the Lake Tahoe Basin

Headed to the Lake Tahoe Basin for a summer camping trip? Black bear biologists who work in the Tahoe Basin every day have some advice and thoughts to share to help keep Tahoe bears wild. 

California Local Pin Marker From CalMatters...

07/03/2024
Assemblymember James Gallagher speaks during the floor session at the state Capitol in Sacramento on June 13, 2024. Photo by Cristian Gonzalez for CalMatters

Folsom Times logo From Folsom Times...

07/02/2024
Image for display with article titled Wildfire Evacuations Ordered in El Dorado County Tuesday

Residents in areas of El Dorado County have been given evacuation orders due to a growing wildfire Tuesday afternoon.

Tahoe Daily Tribune logo From Tahoe Daily Tribune...

07/02/2024
Image for display with article titled Lake Tahoe Summer Fire Restrictions, Red Flag Warnings & National Fire Danger Rating System

LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev. – Summer is in full swing and so are fire restrictions in the Lake Tahoe Basin. Please "Know Before You Go" and check the fire restriction status in your area.

California Local Pin Marker From South Tahoe Now...

07/02/2024
A free curbside chipping service is being offered by South Lake Tahoe Fire and the Lake Valley Fire Protection District to help dispose of the small trees and limbs you've cleared as part of your defensible space strategy.

California Local Pin Marker From South Tahoe Now...

07/01/2024
Representatives from the El Dorado Sheriff's Office, Cal Fire, South Lake Tahoe Police and Fire, Lake Valley Fire, Fallen Leaf Lake Fire, CHP, USFS, and CERT met on June 29 to discuss evacuation planning and the county emergency alert system.
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