they are stuff. almost nothing can kill them. but climate change is killing that. shrinking the giant sequoias footprint. a giant sequoia that was first weakened by drought was then subject to impacts by the bark beetle which then further weakened the tree and potentially made it more susceptible to fire. reporter: said to be the fifth largest tree in the entire world, it s lived more than 3,000 years. and yet, we are seeing wildfire is threatening these giant sequoias more than ever before. the castle fire was a wake-up call. an estimated 7,500 to 10,600 trees were destroyed in that one fire alone. reporter: started by lightning in august 2020, the castle fire was part of the sequoia complex that burned more than 174,000 acres, scorching several sequoia groves.
giant sequoia trees. they re nearly as tall as the statue of liberty. this picture taken last friday trying to wrap the bases from foil to keep them from burning potentially. of course, the forest is home to over 2,000 trees and while over the years they have developed some resistance to extreme conditions, they re probably no match for the high intensity fires we re seeing due to climate change n. 2020 the castle fire killed several hundred trees. the red flag warning is mainly in effect for northern california where fires could easily start and spread because of the dry conditions and because of the wind. this isn t necessarily because of high heat that we ve been seeing throughout most of this fire season. the dixie fire and caldor fire are getting better. the winds aren t helping. why is it so windy? we had a cold front move in. off shore flow is keeping those
it was devastating, heartbreaking. everything had been incinerated. it was a field of the world s largest burned-up toothpicks. reporter: after decades of suppressing forest fire, other trees and brush have grown rampantly around the sequoias. the fires that used to burn every five to ten years in the sierra would just keep down the competition, and reduce the fuel naturally. reporter: on land owned by the save the redwoods league, we hiked out to see just how deadly the castle fire was here. for us to see 10 to 14% of the total of giant sequoias alive, killed in one year, in one fire, is there s nothing to compare that to. reporter: yet, fire, in and of itself, is not the enemy of the giant sequoia. their cones open up. their seeds start to germinate after a fire. reporter: so near those lost giants where the fire wasn t too intense, small chutes of hope take root.
prompted a red-flag warning, meaning conditions are favorable for the spread of wildfires. the warning affects about 6 million people, and it includes that dixie fire which has already burned an incredible nearly a million acres. crews are also battling a fire that has reached sequoia national park. it s an area where some of the world s largest trees have stood for thousands of years. cnn s stephanie elam is covering that part of the story. reporter: from their size, general sherman is 275 feet tall. holy cow. to their longevity. before ancient rome, before christ, i mean, these trees were were mature. reporter: much about giant sequoia trees is on a grand scale. with that distinctive, red-brown bark covering their thick trunks, sequoia trees can only be found in california s sierra nevada mountains. this is a resilient tree.
san francisco pier in 205. the man who fired the gun was acquitted on murder and manslaughter charges. but he remains behind bars for being ex-felon in possession of a gun. his former lawyers argue the charge is, quote, premised on lies and misinformation. two wildfires are threatening the giant sequoia trees in nevada. the fires have burned over 7,00. fires are both heading toward the giant forest, home to over 2,000 of the iconic trees. between 7 and 10,000 of the giant trees destroyed by wildfires in 2020. how about this? what would you do in this situation? a massive alligator swims right up to a paddle boarder in florida in a close encounter was caught on camera. watch. go away oh my god. why are you messing with me? jillian: the alligator hissing as the woman pushes it away with