Good afternoon everyone, update on the Sycamore Fire. The fire is currently approximately 25 acres, and forward progress has been stopped. The east and west flanks of the fire have been secured with hose lays and fire retardant, and there is currently no threat to park facilities and housing or to the community of Three Rivers. The Generals Highway has been fully reopened in both directions.

There is a 5-acre fire west of the Ash Mountain Helibase near the entrance to Sequoia National Park. Tulare County, CALFIRE, and NPS fire resources are responding. There are currently no evacuations. The Ash Mountain Entrance Station in Three Rivers is closed to inbound traffic. The Generals Highway is open to outbound (downhill traffic) of people leaving the park. Numerous aircraft are expected to arrive on scene very soon. The cause of the fire is unknown at this time. We will issue updates as information becomes available. 

Fire management staff at Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks are preparing to begin burning piles of cut vegetation in multiple locations throughout the parks. The work will be ongoing as conditions allow from October 21 – December 1, 2023. Throughout the duration of the project, visitors to the parks may see smoke, burning piles, firefighters, and firefighting apparatus along the roadway.

Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks plan to begin ignitions on the Grant Grove Prescribed Burn, in the Grant Grove area of Kings Canyon National Park on Sunday, October 15. 520 acres of burning are planned over the course of 4-6 days of ignitions. The General Grant Tree, the Grant Tree Trail, and the Grant Tree Road, as well as trail systems in the surrounding area, will be inaccessible during the ignitions, and the Azalea Campground will be closed.

Fire management staff and park leadership have elected to utilize a confine and contain strategy to manage the Redwood Fire, located in the wilderness of Sequoia National Park, near Redwood Meadow. The lightning-ignited fire is currently 75 acres in size and burning at low intensity up a steep, forested slope. It currently poses no threats to life or property.