Photo Courtesy of ktvn.com
The huge plume of dark gray smoke coming from the SE corner of the Lake is not a prescribed burn. You may have noticed the thick smoke if you were driving around the lake yesterday. A prescribed burn was going on near the Rubicon area, but the Ray May Fire, burning seven miles south of Gardnerville, was started by two 15 year old boys and is a full-on wildfire. The two teenagers built a fort in the woods, started a campfire, and did not extinguished it before winds picked up and spread the blaze.
The total area of the fire is now at about 2700 acres and is at least 50% contained. Three structures have burnt down due to the teenagers negligence, and both boys have been charged with third degree arson. Moreover, two firefighters were injured battling the blaze, and are being treated for non life threatening injuries. There is no word on when the fire will be fully contained, and local homeowners in the area are under voluntary evacuation.