To: ENVIRONMENTAL EDITORS Contact: Anita Brown, +1-530-792-5644, or Bill Ward, +1-530-792- 5616, both of NRCS DAVIS, Calif., Aug.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. _ As a wall of flames roared down the mountainside, a firefighter unfurled a protective tent over himself and discovered a chipmunk had scrambled into his fireproof shelter with him. After the danger passed, the chipmunk slipped away unscathed by last summer's Angora fire.

By Cathy Locke, The Sacramento Bee, Calif. Jun. 13--Lake Tahoe-area fire officials say they may seek new county ordinances to help prevent catastrophic wildland fires.

Last summer's Angora Fire did much more than cause $140 million in property damage, including the destruction of 254 South Lake Tahoe homes.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Tuesday declared a state of emergency in Placer and El Dorado counties, ahead of what may be a hazardous fire season.