As temperatures rise, Shaver Lake area becomes a big concern for firefighters

SHAVER LAKE, Calif. (KFSN) -- Cal Fire is working in collaboration with inmate firefighters to build fuel breaks around portions of the Shaver Lake community. Chipping brush and burning trees to thin out the forest in order to slow fire growth.

"The threat of wildfire in the Sierras is extreme," said Ken Pimlott, Director of Cal Fire.

It's wildfire awareness week and Cal Fire said although we have seen a lot of rainfall over the last few months; it won't solve the problem in the Sierras.

Multiple agencies working against the wildfire threat Thursday said the rainfall won't help the trees already dead and dried out.

"What's exasperated the fire problem in Shaver Lake is tree mortality, throughout the Sierras we have over 100 million trees that have died due to this epidemic level of bark beetle. Shaver Lake is really ground zero to what has occurred," said Pimlott.

PG&E is also working with Cal Fire and they say they're patrolling their power lines and cutting down trees on customer's properties if they threaten power lines.

"Just in the five counties around Fresno we granted a little over $400,000 to fire safe councils that money will go to fuel reduction projects," said Denny Boyles, PG&E spokesperson.

Cal Fire is telling residents and homeowners to follow defensible space requirements and have an evacuation plan in order. They also say there is a new app called "Ready for Wildfire" that can help homeowners make their property safer and gives real-time fire updates.

"Homeowners need to do their part to help protect their homes, their property, quite frankly their families and the safety of everybody who lives in these communities," said Pimlott.