SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. • A day after an explosive wildfire emptied a resort city at the southern tip of Lake Tahoe, a huge firefighting force braced for strong winds Tuesday as residents in neighboring Nevada were put on notice to be ready to flee.

The city of South Lake Tahoe, usually bustling with summer tourists, was eerily empty and the air thick and hazy with smoke from the Caldor fire, one of two major blazes plaguing California. On Monday, roughly 22,000 residents jammed the city’s main artery for hours after they were ordered to leave as the fire advanced, chewing up drought-stricken vegetation.

The National Weather Service warned that weather conditions through Wednesday would include low humidity, dry fuel and wind gusts up to 30 mph.

“That’s definitely not going to help the firefighting efforts,” said Courtney Coats, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Forest Service.

As of Tuesday morning, the fire was about 7 miles from the lake, but she said forestry officials did not know how close the flames were to city limits, and crews had not been able to go into burned areas to assess damage.

South Lake Tahoe city officials said only a handful of residents defied the evacuation order.

But nearly everyone worried Tuesday about what the fire would do next.

“It just kind of sucks waiting. I mean, I know it’s close down that way,” said Russ Crupi, gesturing south from his home in the Heavenly Valley Estates mobile home park, which he and his wife manage for a living. He had arranged sprinklers and tractors around the neighborhood.

“I’m worried about what’ll be here when people come back. People want to come back to their houses and that’s what I’m going to try to do,” he said.

Pushed by strong winds, the Caldor fire crossed two major highways and burned mountain cabins as it swept down slopes into the Tahoe Basin. More firefighters arrived just after dark Monday, and many were dispatched to protect homes in the Christmas Valley area, about 10 miles from South Lake Tahoe.

Thick smoke prevented air firefighting operations periodically last week. But since then, nearly two dozen helicopters and three air tankers dumped thousands of gallons of water and retardant on the fire, fire spokesman Dominic Polito said Tuesday.

The Lake Tahoe area is usually a year-round recreational paradise offering beaches, water sports, hiking, ski resorts and golfing.

South Lake Tahoe bustles with outdoor activities while just across the state border in Stateline, Nev., tourists can gamble at major casinos.

A firefighter battles the Caldor fire Tuesday along Highway 89 near South Lake Tahoe, Calif.

the associated press