Fire Chief Message

Fire Chief Steve Leighton

Chief Schwartz

Steve Leighton is the Fire Chief of the North Tahoe Fire and Meeks Bay Fire Protection Districts, serving the north and west shores of Lake Tahoe, and the communities in Alpine Meadows. Chief Leighton is a 30-year veteran of the fire service.

Chief Schwartz

July 2022 Summer Update

I like to start off my greetings by sharing how proud I am of our talented professionals at NTFPD, all of whom are dedicated to providing you with the highest level of fire protection, fire prevention, rescue, and Advanced Level Emergency Medical Services and ambulance transport. We are proud to serve and protect you, your
friends and loved ones, your homes and your businesses.

2021 was NTFPD’s busiest season on record, with a 7% increase in annual calls for service over what was previously our busiest year, and a 10% increase from 2020 with a new record of 2,741 calls for service. We experienced another record for fire weather, with 15 days that met the full criteria for a Red Flag Warning. Historically, the Tahoe Basin averaged six Red Flag Warnings per season. 2021 left us blanketed in smoke as the Tamarack, Dixie and Caldor Fires raged around us. The close call with the Caldor is a reminder that we need to remain prepared to evacuate at all times. It also demonstrated the value of defensible space and home hardening at the community level, which allowed firefighters to make a successful stand in Christmas Valley.

The efforts we take now to harden homes to ember storms and reduce the ladder fuels that carry wildfire will improve our odds of surviving wildfires in the future. I hope you find the information in our annual newsletter to be of value, and that you are able to use these resources to help make your home and ultimately our
community more resilient to wildfire.

I would like to thank you for visiting our website.  Please follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Nextdoor, and listen to our live radio traffic at www.broadcastify.com.

All members of the North Tahoe Fire Protection District are here to serve you every hour of every day. If you have any questions regarding the District or the services we provide, please do not hesitate to email me or call me at (530) 583-6911.

Respectfully,

Steve Leighton, Fire Chief

North Tahoe Fire Protection District (NTFPD) was formed in 1993 with the consolidation of the Tahoe City Fire Department (Est. 1941) and North Tahoe Fire (Est. 1957).  NTFPD provides service via contract to the Meeks Bay Fire Protection District (2014), to the community of Alpine Meadows (2006), and provides ambulance transport for the community of Olympic Valley.