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Fire-Burned Tree Hazards Near Camino

Some trees were scorched by a wildfire and are still standing. Some look fine and aren't. Call (530) 803-4676 and a tree service will come look at yours.

Call (530) 803-4676

This page is about burned tree hazards in Camino. We send a tree service for burned tree hazards to your Camino door.

Getting burned tree hazards done in Camino

Tell us the road and the tree for burned tree hazards. We write down your address. We note the tree. They check lean, wires and access first.

What the fire did to the trees around us in Camino

The Caldor Fire began on August 14, 2021. According to Caltrans, it burned nearly 222,000 acres of the Eldorado National Forest and shut Highway 50 for 30 days. Evacuation orders went to Grizzly Flats, Somerset, Sly Park Reservoir and Pollock Pines.

Plenty of us drive through that burn area on Highway 50. Plenty of us also own land close to it, with trees that were singed at the edges.

A few years on, the dead ones are the problem. They dry out. Roots rot. Then a snow load or a gust of wind finishes the job. A tall dead pine can fall onto a road, a roof or a person.

Burned does not always mean dead in Camino

This part surprises folks. Fire-hurt trees can fool you. The University of California has a handful of tips on telling them apart.

• Healthy cambium, the thin layer under the bark, is creamy-white and moist. If it's darker, or yellow and dry, the fire got it.
• Black bark that cracks and lifts off the wood means the cambium is dead.
• A tree that lost most of its needles can still come back if the cambium lives.
• Lots of oaks send up new shoots from the base after a hot burn.
• Ponderosa and Jeffrey pines have tough buds, so wait for spring before you judge them.

The same UC note says even trees that seemed to survive, with trunks and needles intact, may die. When there is a lot of fuel on the ground, the roots get long, hot heat. A tree can look fine for a year and then go.

That is why a tree company should look at any tree you aren't sure about. A burned tree near a roof, a drive or a play yard is not a guess.

What the road crews are doing in Camino

After the fire, Caltrans put emergency contracts in place for Highway 50. The work included hazardous tree and debris removal, along with guardrail, pavement and drainage repairs.

The Eldorado National Forest also has a roadside program. It takes out dead and dying trees within 200 feet of the roadway to protect the public and the road.

Those projects are for roads and forest land. They don't reach your own lot. If a burned tree is on your property, it's yours to deal with, and you'll need a tree service to do it.

The King Fire of 2014 was another big one. It took out 80 structures near Pollock Pines, on a burn of 97,717 acres that mixed forest and private land. Trees from that burn are still a worry in some spots.

How we can help

Ring us with the spot and what's under the tree. A house, a drive, a fence, a wire?

We pick a tree company who works your area and knows burned wood. Tell us if the tree is a lone pine at the edge of the lot or one of many in a stand. The visit is different for each.

The tree company will check the bark and the cambium, look at the root zone, and look up at the crown. Then you get a price for what makes sense. That could be taking the tree down. It could also be waiting and checking again in the spring.

What it costs

Ranges are from cost guides. Your tree service sets the real price.

Where the numbers come from: Fixr's removal cost page, 2025.

Fixr says dead trees cost less to fell since the wood weighs less. Some of the work is already done for you. But a burned tree can be brittle, and that slows a careful pro.

Tall dead pines are the exception. If one is near a house or lines, it may need a crane. That's where the top of the range comes from.

Help paying for it

Western Slope homeowners can apply to the county Fire Safe Council for hazardous tree help. It is for dead, dying, sick or beetle-hit trees inside 100 feet of the home.

The council starts with a free evaluation, then pays up to $4,000 for removal and chipping. The owner covers 25%, capped at $1,333.33, and low-income homes may skip it. No hauling of logs happens, but they can be cut into rounds and set 30 feet from the house.

We looked in November 2026 and sign-ups were shut, since grant money was nearly gone. That can change, so ask. Camino has its own Fire Safe Council too.

Keep reading

If a leaning tree is near a wire, see trees near power lines. To get a regular look at your trees, see hazard tree inspection.

Burn areas touch Pollock Pines, Sly Park and Pino Grande.

A fall walk-through

After the first good rain, walk your lot and look at the ground by the tall trees. Cracks in the soil, new gaps near the base or a tree that now leans are all worth a photo. Put the date on it.

Check again in the spring. Pines may push out new needles then, and the ones that don't are the ones to ask a tree service about.

Keep the photos in one folder. Over a year or two, they will show you which trees are changing. That makes the tree service's job easier, and your choices clearer.