Fire Crews Busy Protecting Yosemite From Wildfires

Yosemite National Park photo

Yosemite, CA – Yosemite National Park fire crews have been busy over the past couple of weeks collecting and setting ablaze dry fuels found on the forest ground.

Last week fire crews completed ignition on 81 piles on Garnett Ridge Road in the Crane Flat area and three piles in Wawona, as can be seen in the image box pictures. The piles were created after recent mechanical thinning or removal of some trees to reduce hazards and forest density.

“Burning some of the debris in place allows us to reintroduce limited healthy fire to these areas and prepare for future prescribed burn projects,” detailed park fire officials. They noted that this week crews focused on piles in the Merced Grove area while continuing to work around Wawona and the Mariposa Grove.

Crews were forced to stop burning in the Garnett Ridge area due to snow with park officials noting they will have to wait for it to melt before finishing additional piles in the coming months.