Earth Science News
FIRE STORM
Chile wildfires kill at least 51 in 'unprecedented catastrophe'
Chile wildfires kill at least 51 in 'unprecedented catastrophe'
By Javier TORRES with Paula BUSTAMANTE in Santiago
Vina Del Mar, Chile (AFP) Feb 4, 2024

Wildfires blazing across Chile have killed at least 51 people, leaving bodies in the street and homes gutted, with flames continuing to spread on Sunday and the toll expected to rise.

President Gabriel Boric has decreed a state of emergency in the central and southern parts of the country "due to catastrophe," as dry conditions and temperatures soaring to 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) exacerbated the crisis.

Dense gray smoke blanketed the city of Vina del Mar of the Valparaiso tourist region, along central Chile's coastline, forcing residents to flee.

Rosana Avendano, a 63-year-old kitchen assistant, was away from home when the fire began to sweep through El Olivar, an area of Vina del Mar, where she lives with her husband.

"It was terrible because I couldn't get (to my house). The fire came here... we lost everything," Avendano told AFP.

"My husband was lying down and began to feel the heat of the fire coming and he ran away."

She feared the worst for hours, but eventually was able to contact her spouse.

The death toll rose to 51 on Saturday as firefighters battled to control the flames. The forensic medical service had previously reported 45 deaths, but "there are six more people who died in health care facilities," according to interior under-secretary Manuel Monsalve.

Boric said the number of victims would increase, pledging government support to help people get back on their feet.

Authorities imposed a curfew beginning at 9:00 pm Saturday (0000 GMT Sunday), to allow emergency supplies -- especially fuel -- into the affected areas.

New evacuation orders were issued, though it remained unclear exactly how many people had been told to leave.

Earlier Saturday, Interior Minister Carolina Toha said there had been 92 fires as of noon, with 43,000 hectares (106,000 acres) burned across the country. Firefighters were still battling 29 of the blazes by the afternoon, while 40 had been brought under control.

In the hillsides around the coastal city of Vina del Mar, entire blocks of houses were burned out overnight, AFP reporters saw Saturday morning, as thousands of people who had previously evacuated returned to find their homes destroyed.

Some of the dead were seen lying on the road, covered by sheets.

The area, about 1.5 hours northwest of the capital Santiago, is a popular tourist destination during the summer months. The coastal region is also important for the country's wine, agricultural and logging industries.

In the towns of Estrella and Navidad, southwest of the capital, the fires burned nearly 30 homes, and forced evacuations near the surfing resort of Pichilemu.

"It's very distressing, because we've evacuated the house but we can't move forward," said 63-year-old Yvonne Guzman, who fled her home in Quilpue with her elderly mother, only to be trapped in traffic for hours.

"There are all these people trying to get out and who can't move," she told AFP.

Vina del Mar Mayor Macarena Ripamonti said, "We're facing an unprecedented catastrophe, a situation of this magnitude has never happened in the Valparaiso region."

- 'Extreme' -

Several thousand hectares have burned in Valparaiso alone, according to CONAF, the Chilean national forest authority.

Images from trapped motorists have gone viral online, showing mountains in flames at the end of the famous "Route 68," a road traveled by thousands of tourists to reach the Pacific coast.

In addition to Valparaiso, firefighters and emergency services personnel were battling blazes in the center and south of Chile, including O'Higgins, Maule, Biobio, La Araucania and Los Lagos.

"This was an inferno," Rodrigo Pulgar, who lost his home in the inland town of El Olivar, told AFP. "I tried to help my neighbor... my house was starting to burn behind us. It was raining ash."

On Friday, authorities closed the road linking Valparaiso to the capital Santiago, as a huge mushroom cloud of smoke "reduced visibility."

The fires are being driven by a summer heatwave and drought affecting the southern part of South America caused by the El Nino weather phenomenon, as scientists warn that a warming planet has increased the risk of natural disasters such as intense heat and fires.

As Chile and Colombia battle rising temperatures, the heatwave is also threatening to sweep over Paraguay and Brazil.

In Argentina, brigades from several provinces have been fighting a fire that has consumed more than 3,000 hectares in Los Alerces National Park, famed for its beauty and biodiversity, since January 25.

Related Links
Forest and Wild Fires - News, Science and Technology

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
FIRE STORM
'It was hell': Survivor recounts rush of flames in Chile wildfire
El Olivar, Chile (AFP) Feb 4, 2024
Rodrigo Pulgar was at home listening to news of the wildfires devastating parts of Chile when flames suddenly began rushing over his community. "It was hell," the 61-year-old told AFP in El Olivar, what had been a peaceful, scenic area. "I tried to help my neighbor...(then) my house was starting to burn. Ash was raining down on us." As a precaution, Pulgar had sprayed water on his wooden roof, which prevented the flames from consuming his home. His neighbors in the community of 13,000 people ... read more

FIRE STORM
Embattled Gaza aid group has been helping Palestinian refugees since 1949

US praises China action on fentanyl but sees political risks

Quake trauma haunts children in Turkey's container city

Syria culture ministry slams US strikes near historic site

FIRE STORM
US Apple fans get hands on $3,500 Vision Pro

US Apple fans get hands on pricey Vision Pro headset

SmallCAT Laser Terminal Demonstrates Effective Space-Earth Communication in LEO

The ShAPE of buildings to come: Scrap aluminum transforms recycling life cycle

FIRE STORM
Return of hungry sea otters protects key coastal ecosystem: study

French prosecutors probe Nestle over mineral water treatments

OpenET Moisture Measurement Tool is Proving Highly Accurate

Barcelona faces water restrictions as drought emergency declared

FIRE STORM
Greenland absorbs more methane than it emits: study

Permafrost alone holds back Arctic rivers - and a lot of carbon

Scientists warn missing Russian data causing Arctic climate blind spots

Colombian mission to Antarctica analyzes climate change footprints

FIRE STORM
French govt under fire for putting pesticide phase-out on hold

Tajikistan wants to stockpile food over climate change

Fixing food could produce trillions in annual benefits: report

Protesting farmers block major roads into Paris

FIRE STORM
Nearly 60,000 killed in 2023 Turkey, Syria quake: new toll

Turkey commemorates its worst disaster of modern times

Torrential rain kills at least one on France's Reunion island

Turkey quake survivors seek justice one year on

FIRE STORM
African Union troops complete new phase of Somalia pullout plan

UN 'appalled' by killing of 50 people in Mali attacks

EU 'regrets' Mali scrapping peace deal with separatists

Blinken nudges Nigeria on capital flows for US businesses

FIRE STORM
US patient 'happy again' after brain implant treats epilepsy and OCD

App lets Indigenous Brazilians connect in own languages

Activists decry Tibet 'cultural genocide' ahead of China rights review

Woolly mammoth movements tied to earliest Alaska hunting camps

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.