Garnet Fire enters southern edge of McKinley Grove, home to giant Sequoia trees

Around-the-clock efforts are underway to protect giant Sequoias within the McKinley Grove that are being threatened by the raging wild fire burning nearby and continuing to grow in eastern Fresno County.

Officials with the U.S. Forest Service confirmed that the Garnet Fire, which has been burning for three weeks and counting, entered parts of the southern edge of the McKinley Grove this week.

The footprint of the McKinley Grove, which is known for its high concentration of ancient giant Sequoia trees, is about 100 acres.

Jay Tracy, public information officer with the U.S. Forest Service, described the fires as moderate to low — but nonetheless concerning.

Tracy added that the canopy of some trees within the McKinley Grove also caught on fire via ember cast — when strong winds carry hot pieces of smoldering material from the main fire. The base of those trees had not caught fire, Tracy said.

“The front of this fire is miles and miles away,” Tracy said. “It’s not like the Sequoia trees are in immediate threat. But those trees are special. They’re truly loved and cherished, and that’s a big deal.

“We are definitely concerned about them and have taken efforts to protect those trees.”

Smoke jumpers have been requested to help put out the fires burning high in the trees.

Firefighters, meanwhile, placed sprinklers in key areas within McKinley to at least minimize damage to any of the ancient Sequoia trees. The duff layer also was removed to reduce possibility of the forest floor near the Sequoias of burning with high intensity.

As of Tuesday evening, the Garnet Fire was at 56,724 acres with 14% containment. Lightning has been cited as the cause of the fire, which originated Aug. 24 a few miles northeast of Pine Flat Lake.

The Garnet Fire’s spread to the north has concerned fire officials due to the amount of logs in the area near McKinley Grove.

“It looks like somebody kicked over 30 years of project pile work,” said Kevin Montoy, a fire behavior analyst. “There’s just lumber everywhere and that lumber is drier than anything you’re going to find at Home Depot.

“That amount of heat and energy it puts off are difficult to suppress. And those are popping off all over the place, especially up on the north end near Mckinley Grove.”

Montoy said the typography of the area also has made things challenging for firefighters.

“Very steep terrain, very hard to access,” Montoy said. “When those spots get established at the very bottom of a slope, it’s similar to if you had a match and decided to hold it upside down. That heat and energy ... wants to go up. And with that substantial mass — all that Home Depot lumber that’s lined out there — it’s really making it difficult.

“And it’s kind of outmatching what suppression can do out there.”

McKinley Grove was identified by the Giant Sequoia Lands Coalition as one of the most vulnerable of the 80-plus giant sequoia groves in the world.

Some the sequoias within McKinley Grove are estimated to be 2,000-plus years old and the tallest among them is as high as roughly 230 feet.

“Save the Redwoods League applauds the efforts of the Sierra National Forest and California Interagency Incident Management Team 10 for their work to protect communities, infrastructure and giant sequoias in the response to the Garnet Fire,” Ben Blom, director of stewardship and restoration for Save the Redwoods League, said in a statement.

“Even with the team’s heroic efforts, this grove remains highly at risk. The Giant Sequoia Lands Coalition recently assessed McKinley Grove and identified it as one of the top five most vulnerable to devastatin gwildfire impacts.

“McKinley Grove has not experienced fire in nearly 100 years, and recent severe drought has left the grove and surrounding forest filled with the dead trees and highly flammable debris now fueling the Garnet Fire,” Blom added. “The science is clear: Proactive fuels-reduction treatment is indisputably the most necessary and effective method to restore wildfire resiliency to giant sequoia groves across the Sierra.”

Resort closes

Due to the impact of the Garnet Fire, Vermilion Valley Resort decided it will close Wednesday. Limited staff will be on site to assist thru-hikers and resupply packages can be collected until the end of the month.

The resort said it closed due to poor air quality and to assist firefighting activity along Highway 168.