Nevada + California

Nevada Officials Take Proactive Steps To Defend Communities Against Caldor Fire

KUNR Public Radio | By Lucia Starbuck

Published September 10, 2021 at 8:20 PM PDT

Sisolak, along with two men in neon yellow vests, are walking on dirt covered with branches from sagebrush that was removed. To their left is a hill covered in sagebrush and other vegetation.

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Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak toured firefighters’ work to remove sagebrush and other vegetation to create a fuel break in case the Caldor Fire encroaches on the community along Foothill Road in Gardnerville, Nev., on Sept. 10, 2021.";

Lucia Starbuck / KUNR Public Radio

There’s a 20-foot dirt path covered with branches and twigs from vegetation that was removed underneath wooden power poles. The path is at the base of a hill that’s covered in vegetation with a clean line from where the plants were removed.

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NV Energy contracted firefighting personnel to remove sagebrush and other vegetation to create a fuel break in case the Caldor Fire encroaches on the community, and to protect the wooden power poles, along Foothill Road in Gardnerville, Nev., on Sept. 10.

Lucia Starbuck / KUNR Public Radio

Photo taken from the ground. Dirt is taking up most of the image. It’s filled with branches and twigs from sagebrush and several green leaves from vegetation that was removed. In the far background is a dark forested mountain.

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NV Energy contracted firefighting personnel to remove sagebrush and other vegetation to create a fuel break in case the Caldor Fire encroaches on the community along Foothill Road in Gardnerville, Nev., on Sept. 10, 2021.

Lucia Starbuck / KUNR Public Radio

As the Caldor Fire continues to burn in California, officials near the state line in Nevada are taking proactive steps in case the fire creeps closer. The state’s governor took a trip to see the results of those efforts on Friday.

Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak stepped over freshly dug dirt and the roots of sagebrush that were dragged out of the ground. This is what was seen for several miles along a road in Gardnerville, and it’s called a fuel break. If the blaze were to make its way there, the absence of vegetation could prevent the fire from spreading.

“There’s only so much we can do with wildfire. I mean, some of it is not preventable. You know, whether it’s a lightning strike, or there’s some industrial situations that happen, but there are certain things that we can do,” Sisolak said.

Funding for this stemmed from a 2019 law that appropriated money to assist with battling wildfires — before and after they burn.

Lucia Starbuck is a corps member with Report for America, an initiative of the GroundTruth Project.