Scientists race to save one of the world's rarest plants after stranded sailor sparks wildfire

A stranded sailor's distress flares suspected of ignited the largest wildfire ever recorded in California's Channel Islands, burned nearly 40% of Santa Rosa Island and are now threatening one of only two naturally occurring populations of Torrey pine trees on Earth .

The Channel Islands are a chain of eight islands off Southern California, stretching along the coast from roughly Santa Barbara to Los Angeles, with Santa Rosa Island about 26 miles offshore.

The bizarre chain of events began May 14, when a 67-year-old sailor ran his 54-foot sailboat , Wet Vette , aground near Ford Point on the remote southeastern side of Santa Rosa Island. The boat later caught fire, and in video obtained by KEYT , the sailor looked at the burning vessel and remarked that he hoped it would not set the island on fire. With no cell service and his boat destroyed, he spent the night stranded.

The following morning, the sailor fired distress flares to attract attention. A passing sport-fishing captain spotted him and contacted the U.S. Coast Guard, which dispatched a helicopter and hoisted the uninjured man from the island at about 10:38 a.m.

By then, another emergency was unfolding around him. A wildfire had been reported on the island early that morning and was spreading quickly through grasslands and coastal vegetation. The fire was ultimately classified as human-caused, and reporting based on accounts from the Coast Guard and people involved in the rescue linked the ignition to the sailor's distress flares.

What began as one man's rescue would grow into an ecological emergency that scientists are still trying to understand.

Santa Rosa Island sits about 26 miles off the Southern California coast, making the fire difficult to attack. Strong winds pushed flames across grasslands and coastal vegetation while a thick marine layer and coastal winds initially limited air support. Crews and equipment had to be ferried to the island, and firefighters faced flames up to 30 feet high.

The fire grew quickly, eventually burning 18,379 acres, according to CAL Fire , nearly two-fifths of the island and more land than any wildfire previously recorded in the Channel Islands. NASA satellite images showed the burn scar spreading dramatically across the eastern side of the island in just over a week.

One of only two populations on Earth

Torrey pines are among the rarest pine trees in the world. They grow naturally in only two places: near San Diego and on Santa Rosa Island. The island is even more unusual because it is home to the only natural population of the Torrey pine's genetically distinct island subspecies.

At first, the news appeared positive. Early aerial and drone surveys suggested much of the Torrey pine canopy had escaped the worst of the flames. NASA reported in June that the stand appeared largely intact, although some pockets had burned more intensely.

Closer inspection told a much different story.

Before the fire, a 2014 inventory counted more than 24,000 Torrey pines on Santa Rosa Island, including about 3,000 mature trees capable of producing cones, according to the National Park Service. The National Park Service now estimates that 60% to 80% of Santa Rosa Island's Torrey pines may die from injuries sustained in the fire.

Some of the damage was hidden below the canopy. Torrey pine groves had accumulated thick beds of fallen needles and other organic material beneath the trees. When those layers burned, they held intense heat against the ground for extended periods.

Many mature Torrey pines also had roots exposed near the surface and buried beneath that combustible material. National Park Service biologists examining damaged trees found extensive scorching around roots and the bases of trunks. When they scratched through the bark to look for signs of life, many trees produced no sap. Tissue underneath was dry and brittle.

Researchers say mature Torrey pines are not well adapted to survive wildfire, but the species presents scientists with an intriguing complication. While older trees may die in fire, Torrey pines may be better equipped to reproduce afterward. Some cones hold onto their seeds longer, and young trees can benefit from the additional sunlight created when vegetation is removed. That means the burned landscape could offer an opening for a new generation of Torrey pines.

It could also erase this one.

Rain as another threat

The fire is out, but the race to protect the Torrey pines has moved into a new phase. Without vegetation and ground cover, burned hillsides are vulnerable to erosion when California's rainy season arrives and threatens what little topsoil is left that is essential for seedlings to take root.

The National Park Service's post-fire assessment found that runoff and sediment movement could increase sharply in some burned watersheds. Several drainages running through the Torrey pine grove could also face debris-flow risk during intense rainfall.

"Protecting these slopes before winter storms arrive gives us the best opportunity to restore this extraordinary landscape for future generations," Channel Islands National Park Superintendent Ethan McKinley said.

Crews have begun installing long tubes of natural fiber known as wattles across burned slopes. The barriers slow runoff and help keep soil and seeds from washing downhill. About 4,500 feet of wattles had already been installed by early September.

Scientists are also trying to preserve as much of the surviving Torrey pine population as possible. Park staff and partners have now collected more than 14,000 Torrey pine seeds with plans to grow and replant hundreds of seedlings each year while crews stabilize burned slopes before the rainy season.

Whether that will be enough is still unknown. With as much as 80% of Santa Rosa Island's Torrey pine population expected to die, rebuilding one of only two naturally occurring populations on Earth will be measured not in months but in generations.