Fire fighters from throughout the region are converging on a very fast moving wildfire that erupted at the north end of East Lake Boulevard, near 395 and the NDF Nursery. The fire began half-way up a hill that had high voltage power lines right above it…so slapping power lines in today’s high winds could be a cause.

The fire is spreading northeasterly at a very fast pace…running just uphill from 395 through Pleasant Valley. No homes were immediately threatened with the exception of a couple of homes to the south, just uphill from 395 through Pleasant Valley. But the homes were surrounded by fire trucks ready to start spraying water on the homes if the fire got too close, which so far, it hasn’t.

Fire officials say the blaze is moving rapidly toward the old Andrew Lane burn of several years ago, which should slow the fire down, since there is not a lot of fuel on the hillsides.

Also…a cottonwood tree has been blown over into a charming blue house at the corner of Telegraph and Anderson. The elderly couple who live there were not home at the time but will come home to find the huge tree into their front porch, up and over to the top of their roof. Heavy damage.

High profile vehicles are still prohibited through Washoe Valley.

3:45pm

   Governor Gibbons told news reporters this afternoon that despite the state’s pot of red ink rising to $900 million, he’s still not talking state worker layoffs, for now.  But he is talking further budget cuts, although he says he wants to soften those cuts on K-12 education, public safety and prisons.

Gibbons told reporters that budget discussions with ranking state lawmakers, including top Democrats, are focused on getting through the next year without layoffs or crippling cuts to k-12 schools,  universities, community colleges and public safety.   Gibbons says after further meetings with lawmakers, he’ll announce what those cuts will be and to which state division.

State Budget Director Andrew Clinger told News Carson City that there might be an additional 3% cut to selective departments, including Health and Human Services but that has not been finalized.  He said the bulk of the cuts will hopefully come from major state construction projects that have not yet been started, like improvements to four state prisons and the so-called state University Health Sciences program.  No major highway projects, however, would be affected.   Clinger said if they can find another $52 million for next year’s budget, then there won’t be any layoffs.  But if economic conditions force it, then those layoffs would start with Health and Human Services.  He added that they’re hoping that $4-6 billion in mega-resort construction projects on the ‘Vegas Strip will boost Clark County’s tax contribution to the state budget to help turn things around.

Again, talks resume between Gibbons and lawmakers with a final set of cuts and projections within two to three weeks.

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Declining tax revenues are once again putting state government in a financial hole that may involve more painful budget cuts that some state agency chiefs predict will all but cripple their operations from prisons to child medical care.

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Declining tax revenues are once again putting state government in a financial hole that may involve more painful budget cuts that some state agency chiefs predict will all but cripple their operations from prisons to child medical care.