Firefighters wrap world's largest tree to protect it from California fire

Sep 17, 2021 11:00 am News 249

Firefighters 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 other sequoias, the Giant Forest Museum and other buildings were wrapped for protection against the possibility of intense flames, fire spokeswoman Rebecca Paterson said.The aluminum wrapping can withstand intensive heat for short periods. Federal officials say they have been using the material for several years throughout the U.S. West to protect sensitive structures from flames. Near Lake Tahoe, some homes that were wrapped in protective material survived a recent wildfire 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, within days, fire officials said. However, the fire didn't grow significantly Thursday as a layer of smoke reduced its spread in the morning, fire spokeswoman Katy Hooper said.

Smoke from the Windy Fire rises above a giant sequoia in Sequoia National Forest, Calif., on Thursday. (Noah Berger/The Associated Press) It comes after a wildfire killed thousands of sequoias, some as tall as highrises 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 metres, according to the National Park Service. It towers 84 metres high and has a circumference of 31 metres at ground level.