Lake Tahoe evacuees may finally return home soon after firefighters begin to subdue Caldor Fire

Tens of thousands of South Lake Tahoe residents are watching hopefully this weekend for a chance to return home as firefighters make progress against a threatening California blaze that has turned their thriving resort into a ghost town. The Caldor Fire consumes trees in Eldorado National Forest on Friday as better weather has slowed the growth of the huge California wildfire near Lake Tahoe resort communities The Cal Fire website shows that crews have about 32% of the Caldor Fire contained, as of Friday night. It has burned more than 213,270 acres in just 19 days after the fire began on August 14 The sun is visible through thick smoke beyond trees scorched by the Caldor Fire in Eldorado National Forest on Friday Trees scorched by the Caldor Fire smolder in Eldorado National Forest on Friday Will Fitch, fire captain from Cosumnes Fire Department, holds a fire line to keep the Caldor Fire from spreading in South Lake Tahoe on Friday Two firefighters from Cosumnes Fire Department carry water hoses while holding a fire line to keep the Caldor Fire from spreading in South Lake Tahoe on Friday Members of a hotshot crew hike up the mountain while battling the Caldor Fire in South Lake Tahoe on Friday A tree is covered in fire retardant as fire crews continue to battle the Caldor Fire in South Lake Tahoe on Friday Members of a hotshot crew walk through thick smoke from the Caldor Fire in South Lake Tahoe Fire trucks are parked along Highway 89 as fire crews build a fire line to keep the Caldor Fire from spreading in South Lake Tahoe on Friday Firefighter Walter Villalobos from Cosumnes Fire Department stands on top of a fire truck as the sun is visible through smoke generated by the Caldor Fire near South Lake Tahoe on Friday A hotshot crew from Tahoe Hotshots hikes along a trail in Meyers on Friday near South Lake Tahoe The Cal Fire website shows that crews have about 32% of the Caldor Fire contained, as of Friday night. A map on the Cal Fire website shows the mandatory evacuations still in effect in red, with evacuation warnings in yellow and the orange boundaries being the fire itself A map from Cal Fire shows the Caldor Fire and Tamarack Fires in proximity to South Lake Tahoe Horrible air quality conditions are seen at Lake Tahoe last Sunday as the massive Caldor Fire has encroached on the California mountain resort town Fire crews still had a lot of work to do in the grasslands, timber stands and granite outcroppings. A warning sign is placed outside an evacuated home as fire crews continue to battle the Caldor Fire in Meyers on Friday Fire crews still had a lot of work to do in the grasslands, timber stands and granite outcroppings Despite the overall better weather, winds could still be 'squirrely' and locally erratic as they hit the region's ridges and deep canyons Trees burned by the Caldor Fire smolder in Eldorado National Forest in California on Friday The air quality reached a shocking level of 661 on the Purple Air index by 2 a.m. on Saturday morning headed into Labor Day weekend.