Wind-Whipped Fire Scars Scenic California Area -- Blaze Only 5 Percent Contained; Major Highway Remains Closed

RIVERTON, Calif. - A wind-whipped wildfire ravaged the parched Eldorado National Forest for a third day this morning, devastating a stunning section of one of California's most scenic highways.

"It looks as if an A-bomb dropped here," California Division of Forestry firefighter Warren Grandall said. "Everything is so black and everything is on fire."

The 16,300-acre fire toppled burning trees onto the still-closed Highway 50, a major route to Lake Tahoe. A Forest Service spokesman said the highway, closed since Tuesday, could remain shut down until Sunday.

Officials said they did not know when the fire could be brought under control. Just 5 percent of the fire had been contained.

The wildfire, about 40 miles by road southwest of Lake Tahoe, destroyed at least 26 buildings, a figure that has been revised downward from earlier estimates. Most were summer cabins and residences, worth about $3.4 million, U.S. Forest Service officials said.

The fire scorched a vast path through one of California's beautiful regions, where mountain vistas and the clear waters of the upper American River have drawn vacationers, hikers and hunters for decades. Wooded trails used by Pony Express riders were covered with smoking embers.

Along Highway 50 between Whitehall and Alder Creek, the blaze left a trail of blackened trees and embers. Most of the 26 lost structures - including cabins built in the 1800s - were in that area.

Said Parky May, a Red Cross official: "People coming up from the Bay area . . . will really notice how much has been ruined. I wonder if it will ever come back. It's a real scar on this beautiful piece of California."

The fire threatened more buildings near Whitehall, but hundreds of firefighters made a stand, cutting fire breaks, chopping tall pines and clearing debris by hand to save the cabins. One firefighter dipped his hard hat into the river to douse embers as ridges on both sides of the highway were aflame.

Late yesterday, fire crews and bulldozers focused on clearing brush south of Union Valley Reservoir, 20 miles northeast of the community of Pollock Pines, to keep the fire from advancing into rugged, heavily wooded country.

"If it (gets) over the reservoir, it's back-up-and-punt time," said Dave Burrough, a spokesman for the Forest Service.

More than 2,300 firefighters from across the state and Nevada were on the lines. More fire crews were scheduled to arrive today. Twenty aircraft - including air tankers and helicopters - also battled the blaze.

Erratic gusts of up to 30 mph and low humidity yesterday pushed the fire into treacherous terrain and hampered fire crews. During one 15-minute period, fire officials estimated, the fire had gobbled up 2,000 acres.

A National Weather Service forecast indicates conditions could improve today. A 20 percent chance of showers for the region was predicted with highs in the mid-70s. Winds are expected out of the south and southwest with gusts up to 25 mph.

The fire erupted Tuesday afternoon on Ice House Road, near the Cleveland Corral picnic area about five miles west of Kyburz. It charred 5,000 acres before moving to the south side of Highway 50.

The cause of the fire is under investigation. Fire officials reported last month that an arsonist had set six fires near Highway 50 between Kyburz and Pollock Pines. No arrests have been made in those blazes.

The inferno - measuring 4 miles on its eastern and western sides and 5 miles on the south and north - was consuming a forest that had been parched by six years of drought.