When the Caldor fire started on Aug. 14 in Northern California, no one expected that two weeks later its flames would cross the Sierra Nevada mountains, threatening the communities and beloved tourist attractions around Lake Tahoe. But as temperatures rise around the world due to climate change, massive and destructive wildfires have become.
A man plays violin as he waits in a miles-long traffic jam on Highway 50 as people evacuate South Lake Tahoe, Aug. 30.A snow machine drenches a slope-facing patio to protect it from the Caldor fire at Sierra-at-Tahoe ski resort in Twin Bridges, California, Aug. 30.Josh Edelson / AFP via Getty ImagesJosh Edelson / AFP via Getty ImagesAnadolu Agency via Getty ImagesAnadolu Agency / Anadolu Agency via Getty ImagesJustin Sullivan / Getty ImagesJae C.
Madeleine Castellanos, 3, leans out of the window of her mother’s car while they wait in an evacuation line on Highway 50 in South Lake Tahoe, Aug. 30.Mark Salerno of the Iron Mountain Hand Crew creates a fire break near Echo Summit Lodge in South Lake Tahoe, Aug. 30.The Caldor fire burns in the hills above homes near South Lake Tahoe, Aug. 30.Flames are seen in the windows of a cabin near Phillips, California, Aug. 29.
From left: Darob Baker, Matt Ziebarth, and Capt. Rob Sime, all with the El Dorado County Fire Department, work on protecting structures near South Lake Tahoe, Aug. 30.