Voluntary evacuation lifted for Donner Lakes area community

The voluntary evacuation order for the Serene Lakes community was lifted after clean-up work was done on the last active property known to be affected by a propane leak.

The order was lifted by the Truckee Fire Protection District and Placer County Sheriff’s Office in consultation with the county’s Environmental Health Division and county Office of Emergency Services. The order was put into place about two months ago to encourage property owners to avoid Serene Lakes as much as possible until the propane emergency was resolved.

Emergency officials cautioned the public needs to be aware the potential for new propane leaks still exists.

Since March, 42 properties at Serene Lakes, a community near the Donner Summit, have been affected by propane leaking from the plumbing that connects the tanks to houses. Leaking propane was the likely cause of an April 8 explosion that demolished an unoccupied three-story cabin in Serene Lakes.