Emergency declarations for five counties ringing Lake Tahoe were signed late Tuesday by California and Nevada governors to help speed fire-protection efforts in the scenic mountain resort area hit by a catastrophic blaze last summer. The declarations were among more than 70 recommendations by a special panel formed by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Nevada Governor Jim Gibbons after the Angora Fire destroyed 254 homes and caused $140 million in property damage in South Lake Tahoe. "We will not rest until this natural crown jewel is as safe as it is beautiful," Schwarzenegger said prior to the signings that affect California's El Dorado and Placer counties and Nevada's Carson City, Douglas and Washoe counties. "Many of these recommendations can be implemented swiftly, and I hope that everyone with the power to make these changes does so quickly," Gibbons said, referring to the California-Nevada Basin Fire Commission's report. U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein, who joined the governors, commission members and firefighters at the conference, said that saving Lake Tahoe "is going to be a continuing work in progress. One thing is clear, it's not going to be done in 10 years, it will be ongoing." The fire commission wants the state and federal governments to free up money quickly, primarily to cut thick stands of trees. Many of its recommendations are intended to resolve the bureaucratic infighting among overlapping agencies that has hampered fire-prevention efforts for years. The commission said thinning overgrown forests around communities should be completed within five years and within a decade throughout the entire Tahoe basin.

Two local educators are attempting to introduce a new program to Amador County which involves preparing homeowners to stay and defend their homes during the event of a wildfire, instead of evacuating. The program, known as “Prepare-Stay-Defend” or PSD, is part of the fire protection system in Australia, and its proponents hope it will one day become integrated into America’s mainstream fire services. Last week, the Amador Fire Protection Council heard a presentation from Roy Pike and Steve Bowman, the founders and directors of PSD in America. The two have over 70 years of combined fire fighting experience, and both serve or have served as community college educators on fire technology and suppression. Pike and Bowman noted in their presentation instances where communities were ordered to evacuate too late from their homes and perished when their vehicles were overtaken by wildfire. Such was the case in San Diego a few years ago, when most casualties occurred on the freeway when evacuees became stuck in traffic and subsequently were overcome by fire and smoke. Pike and Bowman believe that if the communities in San Diego had been properly educated and prepared, they could have stayed and saved their homes and their lives. The PSD program includes courses that people can take in order to better understand the nature of fire and how to prepare for it, as well as how to establish neighborhood fire watch groups. In addition, Pike and Bowman are involved in the design plan for the first residential development in the nation constructed upon PSD principles, which will be located off of Aqueduct Road in Pine Grove. “It is important to make clear that we are not trying to displace fire authorities. Rather, we are aiming to work within the fire system and establish a mutual aid with the expectation that homeowners can be properly educated to make the choice of when to stay and defend and when to evacuate,” said Bowman. For more information on the Prepare-Stay-Defend program, you can visit the website at www.prepare-stay-defend.org.