Almost immediately, the forest fire was raging out of control. When it had spent its fury, thousands of acres of trees had been destroyed. animals had been injured and driven from their homes. for safety reasons, the area was closed to the public. lumber companies, too, felt the effects. without trees to supply lumber, these companies lost millions of dollars in sales. when the rains came, there were no trees to keep the soil from washing away. soil erosion and flooding became severe problems.