Wildfires in the burning Washburn Fire in Yosemite National Park are reportedly so intense that they are sending tree debris hundreds of feet into the air, causing at least one near miss for firefighting planes.
A radio message from a plane over the flames on Saturday documented the rare phenomenon: “Hey, I just want to let you know that a branch flew over us,” a pilot radioed into dispatch. “Pretty good size, probably 50 feet above us, coming down and dropped right between tanker 103 and me.”
“Okay, spear. So a repeat of yesterday,” replied the dispatcher.
“That’s exactly what I’m getting,” said the pilot. “So if we continue to see this, we may have to discontinue it. I don’t want to risk breaking an airplane window or damaging an airplane for that.”
#WashburnFire interesting little chat. A near miss with a tree branch and an airstrike and a tanker 103. As civilians we just see planes dropping cargo. But listen to this choreography unfolding behind the scenes of the fire. pic.twitter.com/Dn2CcTZ7qV
— Robert (@Rob_on_sisukas) July 10, 2022
Wildfires are capable of creating their own weather, sometimes called a firestorm. As the fire burns hot and intense at ground level, the heat rises rapidly and creates a vacuum. Air rushes in to fill this vacuum, and the resulting updraft is powerful enough to carry debris, form fire, and make its own lightning.
“This was just confirmed to me directly by an eyewitness in the air!” climatologist Daniel Swain of UCLA tweeted. “Large redwood tree debris (including at least one branch over 2 feet long) has been blown hundreds or more feet vertically by #WashburnFire in Yosemite.”
The Washburn Fire burns in Mariposa Grove in Yosemite National Park, California, on Friday, July 8, 2022. Noah Berger/AP
As of Sunday morning, the Washburn Fire was at 1,591 acres without containment. Evacuation orders remain in effect for Wawona, Mariposa Grove and Wawona Campground, but most of Yosemite National Park is still open. Officials warned visitors to expect delays of up to two hours at entrances to other parts of the park as the south entrance is closed and roads are closed. Visitors are likely to see “smoky conditions and poor air quality” as the fire spreads.
The wildfire started Thursday afternoon near the Washburn Trail at the south end of the park. You can see the latest incident reports from Yosemite National Park here. A map updated by the National Park Service shows where the Washburn Fire is burning within Yosemite’s boundaries:
“The fire is burning in difficult terrain with continuous heavy fuels in and around the fire,” Yosemire Fire wrote in its latest incident report. “Significant tree mortality from 2013-2015 has left significant dead standing and dead fallen fuels. It also poses significant safety hazards to firefighters. Fire scars from past fires located approximately one to three miles from the current fire perimeter will help firefighters slow fire growth. Firefighters will continue to move direct when safe and will scout and prepare indirect lines.”
Temperatures are high across the region this weekend, with a warming trend in the forecast; a high of 86 is expected today and 91 on Monday.
According to the park service, the fire started around 2:00 p.m. Thursday near the Washburn Trail. One of the most popular visitor attractions in Yosemite National Park, Mariposa Grove has more than 500 mature giant sequoias. Giant sequoias are the largest trees in the world, and there are trees in the grove that may be thousands of years old. One of the most famous trees, the towering Grizzly Giant, is estimated to be 2,700 years old. Mariposa Grove was previously closed for three years, from 2015 to 2018, for a $40 million restoration project.
A firefighter protects a redwood tree as the Washburn Fire burns in Mariposa Grove in Yosemite National Park, California, Friday, July 8, 2022. Noah Berger/AP
In 1864, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Yosemite Valley Grant Act into law, protecting the land, including Mariposa Grove, for the public and future generations. The bill would inspire what would become the National Park System.
The Red Cross announced at 5 p.m. Saturday that it had closed the evacuation site at 5089 Cole Road in Mariposa after “taking care of 10 displaced residents and tourists.” The shelter is currently on standby. About 700 people have been evacuated from areas affected by the fire, the Fresno Bee reported. You can find an evacuation map here.
The cause of the fire is under investigation. You can check AlertWildfire’s live cameras to watch the fire progress.
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1of8A firefighter protects a redwood tree as the Washburn Fire burns in Mariposa Grove in Yosemite National Park, California, on Friday, July 8, 2022. Noah Berger/APShow MoreShow Less 2of8A plume rises from the Washburn Fire, as seen from Oakhurst in Madera County, California. burning in Yosemite National Park on Friday, July 8, 2022. Noah Berger/APShow MoreShow Less3of8 4of8 In this image released by the National Park Service, smoke from the Washburn Fire rises near the lower Mariposa Grove in Yosemite National Park, California. Thursday, July 7, 2022 Part of Yosemite National Park is closed as a wildfire has grown fivefold in size near a grove of California’s famous giant sequoia trees, officials said. (National Park Service via AP) Show moreShow less 5of8
A view of the Washburn Fire on Friday, July 8, 2022, currently burning in Yosemite’s Mariposa Grove, an area known as the park’s largest grove of giant sequoias.
Yosemite Fire & Aviation Show moreShow less6of8 7of8
The Washburn Fire is burning in Yosemite National Park.
Yosemite National Park Show moreShow less8of8
This is a developing story and information will be added as it becomes available.
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