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Chilean President Gabriel Boric suspends his vacation to visit the two most affected regions, both under decree of state of catastrophe. The flames have left more than 40,000 hectares burned in the Ñuble and Biobío regions
At least 23 deaths are already counted in the tragic balance left by the wave of forest fires that ravages the south of Chile, more than a hundred fires, concentrated in the center-south zone of the country when temperatures have even exceeded 40 degrees in several cities.
The flames have left more than 40,000 hectares burned in the Ñuble and Biobío regions, located 400 and 500 kilometers south of Santiago. President Gabriel Boric has suspended his vacation in Patagonia and has traveled to the city of Concepción to meet with local authorities and visit affected residents. The state of catastrophe decreed by the president allows the deployment of armed forces in the area.
“We want to regret the death of 23 people,” said the Undersecretary of the Interior, Manuel Monsalve, who explained that there are also 979 injured people. Monsalve explained that of 232 active fires as of Saturday afternoon, 83 are fighting. Of that number, 76 started on Friday, 16 on Saturday. At press time, Sunday’s report was expected.
Of the total deaths, eleven registered in the town of Santa Juana, in the Biobío region, where five of them were members of the same family.
Absolute chaos in Chile today. 7 people have been reported killed so far during this week’s fires. I am getting reports from helicopter pilots down there working, seeing whole villages run over while they try to operate. Unreal accounts coming out of the country #Chile #wildfire pic.twitter.com/IMxjoh0iLo
— TheHotshotWakeUp: Podcast (@HotshotWake) February 4, 2023
Las three sparsely populated regions Hardest hit by the fires are home to many farms, including grapes, apples and berries for export, as well as large tracts of forest.
The authorities announced that the governments of Spain, the United States, Argentina, Venezuela, Ecuador and Brazil have offered help, including planes and firefighters.
(With AFP and local media)