Winds push flames in Sequoia
The KNP Complex burning in Sequoia National Park picked up speed overnight Sunday when it reached an uphill slope that allowed it to access dryer brush and grow by about 1,000 acres.
By Monday morning, the fire was moving toward Redwood Canyon, which contains more than 2,000 oldgrowth sequoia trees, making it the biggest redwood grove in the world.
“Fire likes to go uphill. It has a hard time going downhill,” said Mark Garrett, public information officer for the KNP Complex, which has been burning since a lightning strike sparked it on Sept. 10.
The main concern has been the Giant Forest, which contains the General Sherman, the largest giant sequoia on Earth. Garrett said spot fires flared up overnight in the Giant Forest, which is about 5 miles from Redwood Canyon.
“We are making sure those spot fires aren’t inside any sequoia trees,” Garrett said.
A firefighting crew of 810 personnel was bolstered by a National Guard unit that arrived Monday morning. They were aided by cooler temperatures and humidity that came in from the rainstorms in Northern California.
But those lower temperatures were accompanied by winds that were expected to increase Monday. The wind is coming from the northwest, which is pushing the fire line away from Redwood Canyon and toward the Giant Forest.
“The fire is still several miles away and has to go up and down a few canyons,” Garrett said. “It is not likely it will be there today.”
Hotter weather is expected to arrive Tuesday, when temperatures could reach as high as 97 degrees, Garrett said.
As of Monday afternoon, the fire was measured at 23,743 acres in size.