Giant Sequoias and CA Wildfires

[Lucinda]

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/sep/17/worlds-largest-tree-wrapped-in-fire-resistant-blanket-as-california-blaze-creeps-closer

Firefighters have wrapped the base of the world’s largest tree in a fire-resistant blanket as they tried to save a famous grove of gigantic old-growth sequoias from wildfires burning in California’s rugged Sierra Nevada.

The colossal General Sherman tree in Sequoia national park’s giant forest, some of the other sequoias, the Giant Forest Museum and other buildings were wrapped as protection against the possibility of intense flames, fire spokesperson Rebecca Paterson said.

The aluminium wrapping can withstand intensive heat for short periods. Federal officials say they have been using the material for several years throughout the US west to protect sensitive structures from flames. Homes near Lake Tahoe that were wrapped in protective material survived while others nearby were destroyed.

The Colony fire, one of two burning in Sequoia national park, was expected to reach the Giant Forest, a grove of 2,000 sequoias, at some point on Thursday. It comes after a wildfire killed thousands of sequoias, some as tall as high-rises and thousands of years old, in the region last year.

The General Sherman tree is the largest in the world by volume, at 1,487 cubic meters, according to the National Park Service. It towers 84 meters high and has a circumference of 31 meters at ground level.

[littlemissmartypants]

1. Prayers up! ❤

[Lucinda]

4. ❤️ ✿❧🌿❧✿ ❤️

Thank you!

[littlemissmartypants]

5. ❤ nt

[padfun]

2. My Favorite Park

Sequoia's grow when forest fires burn their forests. The seed generate from that heat or whatever but that's how they propagate.

But still, it hurts to see any of it burn. The big sequoia's are near the west entrance so are in bigger danger of fires that would come from outside the park. North of Sequoia is the southern part of Yosemite but I don't think this fire would ever make it that far nor in that direction.

[Lucinda]

3. They mentioned that - but the fires have been hotter than the trees can stand

They lost a huge section of old growth trees in the last fire because of the extreme heat of the flames

Hopefully the wrapping can save these ancient ones
❤️ ✿❧🌿❧✿ ❤️