FRESNO COUNTY, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – The Garnet Fire slowed Wednesday night, only growing 209 acres - but even its slow growth is beginning to threaten the giant sequoia trees in the McKinley Grove.

“These trees are extremely important and extremely vulnerable,” Alaina Kuhlman with the Giant Sequoia Lands Coalition said.

Kuhlman has dedicated her career to protecting the ancient trees.

“Both coastal redwood and giant sequoia forests are the two forests in the world that store more carbon per acre than any other forest,” Kuhlman said.

She says about 20% of mature giant sequoias have died since 2015. The Garnet Fire continues to threaten that population.

“There still are a lot of hot spots out there. The large fuels that downed logs, big branches, they're still very dry,” wildfire spokes

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