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California firefighters are racing against time to protect some of the oldest living things on Earth
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The Garnett fire sparked by lightning on August 24th has now burned nearly 55,000 acres in Sierra
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National Forest, about 65 miles northeast of Fresno. It's threatening McKinley Grove
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home to about 165 giant sequoias, some more than 2,000 years old. To defend the grove
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crew set up sprinklers to keep the ground wet, cleared brush to slow flames, and even brought
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in smoke jumpers trained to climb trees and knock out embers high in the canopy. On Monday, embers
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reached several sequoia branches, but officials say none of the trees have been lost. The fire
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has produced massive smoke plumes rising over 30,000 feet, signs of extreme behavior. Air quality
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has plunged across the Sierra with Yosemite Valley in the very unhealthy range and Mammoth
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Lakes and Bishop reaching hazardous levels. Evacuations remain in place for parts of Fresno
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County. Scientists warn sequoias are more vulnerable than ever. Nearly 20 percent of the
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world's mature giants have been killed in mega fire since 2020. Drought, climate change and decades
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of fire suppression have left the forest dangerously overgrown. To stay up to date with
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the latest unbiased straight fact reporting, download the Straight Hour News app today
