--- title: "Firefighters Wrap World’s Largest Tree in Foil to Protect From Raging Fire" description: "Massive wildfires in California are forcing firefighters to wrap massive trees in fire-resistant blankets, including the world's largest tree by volume." date: "2021-09-17" modified: "2021-09-17" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/firefighters-wrap-worlds-largest-tree-in-foil-to-protect-from-raging-fire" categories: - "Science & Energy" tags: - "california" - "sequoia" - "the digest" - "wildfires" --- # Firefighters Wrap World’s Largest Tree in Foil to Protect From Raging Fire ![Massive wildfires in California are forcing firefighters to wrap massive trees in fire-resistant blankets, including the world's largest tree by volume.]() *\Image: National Parks Service\* ## Sequoia Safety Massive wildfires in California are forcing firefighters to wrap massive sequoia trees in fire-resistant blankets, including General Sherman, a 275-foot specimen that is believed to be the world's largest tree by volume. It's a climate change-driven disaster endangering some of the oldest and biggest living trees on our planet. General Sherman is estimated to be about 2,500 years old, the [*BBC* reports](). Tragic images shared online by the National Park Service show the base of the gigantic trunk wrapped in tinfoil-like blankets. https://twitter.com/ajplus/status/1438881177029550081 ## Tinfoil Wrap More than 350 firefighters were battling two fires [stretching over parts]() of Sequoia National park. "It’s a very significant area for many, many people, so a lot of special effort is going into protecting this grove," Rebecca Paterson, a spokeswoman for Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, [told the *LA Times*](). Some of the massive trees "are being prepped the same way that we would prep structures," Patterson added. Beyond wrapping the trees in aluminum blankets, nearby vegetation was also cleared to make sure the fire didn't spread. The blankets are made out of the same material that is used to wrap homes in wildfire-endangered areas, and used by firefighters as a last resort in case they ever find themselves surrounded by fire, according to the *LA Times*. It's a sad state of affairs. It would be a national travesty of our own making if we lost one of the largest trees in the world to [record-breaking wildfires](). **READ MORE:** [California fires: General Sherman and other sequoias given blankets]() \[*The BBC*\] **More on wildfires:** [*2021 Wildfires Spewed Record Breaking Amount of C02*]() ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()