Baghdad-INA
Chilean President Gabriel Buric announced that at least 46 people died in the forest fires sweeping central and southern Chile, adding that this toll is temporary and likely to rise.
The fires are expanding in the tourist area of Valparaiso, where the famous coastal resort of Viña del Mar is located.
Interior Minister Carolina Toha said that the fires destroyed about 43,000 hectares on Saturday, especially on the Pacific coast.
Buric announced after flying by helicopter over the area that “forty people died in the fires and six others (died) from their burns. We know that these (numbers) will rise.”
“This is an unprecedented disaster, and the Valparaiso region has never witnessed a situation of this magnitude,” said Macarena Ripamonte, mayor of Viña del Mar, located about 100 kilometers west of Santiago.
The authorities imposed a curfew at night, starting at 21:00 (00:00 GMT), to facilitate the supply of fuel to emergency teams, which is a “priority,” according to Interior Ministry Undersecretary Manuel Monsalve.
New calls for evacuation were launched, but it was not possible to know how many residents remained in their homes.
In total, there were 92 active fires as of midday on Saturday, including 40 under control, most of them in the Valparaiso region but also in the center and south of the country, the Interior Minister announced.
In the hills of Valparaiso, where the streets were filled with hundreds of charred cars, thousands were able to inspect their destroyed homes on Saturday morning.
Firefighters have been struggling tirelessly since Friday to extinguish dozens of fire hotspots in the areas of Valparaiso and O’Higgins in the center, as well as in Maule, Biobio, La Araucania and Los Lagos in the south.
The Minister of the Interior announced that “the priority is the fires in the Valparaiso region, given its proximity to urban areas.” These areas are located between 80 and 120 km northwest of Santiago, and are rich in winemaking, agriculture and forests, and are witnessing an influx of tourists in this period due to their proximity to the Pacific Ocean.
President Buric declared a state of emergency on Friday in order to “provide all necessary means” to confront the development of the fires. 14 ships and five helicopters were mobilized to fight the fire.
2024-02-06 01:50:41