Yosemite wildfire in US threatens some of world’s oldest trees

Hundreds of firefighters have been deployed to rescue some of the world’s oldest and largest trees in the Yosemite National Park of California after a fast-moving wildfire engulfed the popular hiking and camping spot in the United States.

A heatwave is building as the fire is said to have doubled its spread in a day covering over 2,340 acres and only 25 per cent of that has been contained by the firefighters, despite “proactively protecting” the forest, authorities said.

“We are doing everything we can to put this fire out,” including deploying air tankers and helicopters along with ground crews, Nancy Phillipe, spokeswoman for Yosemite Fire Information, told AFP.

Campers and residents in the area were evacuated. However, the sprawling park remained open to visitors, even as heavy smoke obscured scenic vistas and created unhealthy air quality.

Located in California, Yosemite National Park is one of the most frequented tourist spots. It is home to the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias, the largest sequoia grove in the park. The tree grove in the southern portion of Yosemite has more than 500 mature giant sequoias, including the 3,000-year-old Grizzly Giant tree.

Videos and photos doing rounds online show the extent of the fire as smoke billows through the tall sequoias.

“A full initial attack response was dispatched including Yosemite National Park Fire resources and state and local cooperators,” said an incident update released by the InciWeb, an interagency all-risk incident information management system in the United States.

The Washburn fire was first reported on Thursday afternoon. A total of 545 firefighters are trying to stop the blaze using methods including a ground-based sprinkler system.

Authorities are now hoping that an increase in the humidity in the area around the trees and combined with the removal of ground fuels, will reduce the ground fire risk, Yosemite’s fire management said in an update.

Authorities are trying to ascertain the cause of the fire. It has grown to nearly 9.5 square kilometres.

Wildfires are frequent in California due to dry weather but over the past decade, as temperature rises, they have become a very common sight.