The use of small, controlled burns to clear out flammable underbrush has saved thousands of giant sequoias from devastating wildfires, new research finds. Together, the 2020 Castle Fire and 2021 KNP Complex Fire killed as many as 13,000 giant sequoias, or close to a fifth of all sequoias. According to the new study, the death count would have been considerably higher without the use of prescribed burns. The new study used aerial and satellite imagery to examine more than 26,000 giant sequoias. In total, prescribed burns saved an estimated 1,900 sequoias, according to the study, published in Nature Communications.