YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, Calif. — Fire crews strengthened old containment lines on Wednesday to keep a fire in Yosemite National Park from reaching a grove of treasured giant sequoia trees.
The blaze was about 10 miles from Merced Grove, the site of the trees, but flames could reach the grove if the fire becomes extremely active, park spokesman Scott Gediman said.
Merced Grove is among three stands of giant sequoias in the park. The towering trees grow only on the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada and are among the largest and oldest living things on Earth. They can live for longer than 3,000 years and resist fire.
With the exception of some smoke in Yosemite Valley, the park itself was largely unaffected by the fire and remained open, Gediman said.
The fire was threatening about 50 homes that remained under evacuation orders. It has destroyed a home and a duplex and burned through more than 5 square miles since it began on Saturday. It was 34 percent contained.
Fire crews also were battling a blaze in Sierra National Forest about 60 miles northeast of Fresno that grew substantially Tuesday and had spread across nearly 9 square miles. It was threatening 20 homes, though they were not under mandatory evacuation orders, said Anne Grandy, a spokeswoman for the park.