Raging Fires Extensively Damage Big Basin Redwoods State Park

TIME reports on the damage to Big Basin Redwoods State Park near Boulder Creek, California.

Many of Big Basin Redwoods State Park’s coast redwood trees, which have come to symbolize California’s grandeur and ecological diversity, are 1,000 to 1,800 years old, hundreds of feet tall and, in some instances, over 50 feet in circumference. Most were on fire earlier this week, as the CZU August Lightning Complex Fires tore through the park, causing several of the ancient trees to fall.

A redwood tree burns near Big Basin Redwoods State Park Headquarters & Visitor Center in Boulder Creek, Calif., on Aug. 20, 2020. Randy Vazquez/MediaNews Group/The Mercury News—Getty Images