5 years after Caldor Fire, hundreds of dead and unstable trees in Grizzly Flats remain a threat
By Jason Marks
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GRIZZLY FLATS, California (KCRA) — The daily drive through Grizzly Flats is no longer the quiet, scenic commute it once was.
“We are always looking up as we are driving,” said resident Mark Almer.
That’s because many in the small El Dorado County community are worried about what could come crashing down from above: towering, fire-damaged trees.
“You look right there—they’re right next to the road, 150-foot trees,” added resident David Robinson. “Big enough to squish me like a pancake.”
For those who live here, the danger is no joke.
Nearly five years after the Caldor Fire tore through Grizzly Flats, the scars remain. The wildfire destroyed homes and left behind hundreds of dead and unstable trees.
“You can see all the dead trees over there,” Almer added. “At some point they’re going to come down. It’s just a matter of time.”
That time, neighbors fear, could come without warning.
Almer and Robinson have documented the issue for months, capturing images of fallen trees blocking roadways.
“They just disintegrate when they fall,” Robinson said. “It just starts crumbling.”
There are hundreds of trees in the area considered hazardous—at risk of falling onto homes, roads, or power lines.
“Just standing here, I’m a little nervous,” Robinson added. “I’ve seen them fall without any wind or anything.”
Cleanup efforts, however, have been slow.
“Cleanup has been complicated,” said Mark Egbert with the El Dorado Resource Conservation District (RCD). “The entire footprint of Caldor has trees that are falling down every day.”
A major obstacle comes down to one issue—private property. Crews cannot remove dangerous trees without permission from landowners, even if those trees threaten public roads or infrastructure.
“We cannot get on this property yet,” Egbert explained. “These are tall enough—if they come over, they’re coming into the roadway and power lines.”
The RCD currently has more than $1 million in grant funding to remove hazardous trees at no cost to property owners, but participation rates remain low.
“Out of 891 parcels in the community center, we’ve had about 22% of landowners sign up,” Egbert said.
Even after years of outreach through mail and public meetings, many property owners have not responded.
“We’ve been trying for more than three years to get people enrolled,” he said. “We just have not gotten the response that we were hoping for.”
The funding is set to expire in September.
Last year, El Dorado County said it could take action against unresponsive property owners by declaring hazardous properties a public nuisance. So far, that hasn’t happened, but officials now say enforcement may be coming.
“We feel like we’ve exhausted all other options and are ready to try something different and use code enforcement,” said Karen Garner, director of planning and building for El Dorado County.
Residents say the lack of action is frustrating.
“It just perplexes me why they aren’t taking any action,” Robinson said. “It’s been five years since the fire—they’re holding all the cards.”
With help from residents, KCRA 3 contacted several property owners with hazardous trees—many of whom live out of the area. Some said they were unaware of the extent of the damage or the cleanup program.“
“We heard there was a fire up there, but we didn’t know the extent,” said one Bay Area property owner.
When told the cleanup program is free, he responded: “Oh, nice—I haven’t heard that word ‘free’ in a long time.”
Another owner said he hadn’t visited his property much since the fire, but would take action if there was a risk.
“If there’s any danger of them falling on the road, it would be my liability—I’d like to take care of it,” he said.
While the fire moved through Grizzly Flats in just hours, recovery has taken years—and many residents feel left behind.
“We feel ignored,” Almer said. “They just kind of forgot about us.”
Some fear it may take another tragedy to spark action.
“Somebody is going to have to die for the county to say, ‘Oh, we need to do something,’” Robinson added.
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