Santiago – Some two dozen forest fires have burned thousands of
hectares of land in and near several communities in central Chile,
a situation that has forced authorities to decree a red alert in
the area with the aim of obtaining more resources to allow them to
battle the blazes.
The regional director of the National Forestry Corporation, or
Conaf, Julio Figueroa, told reporters on Monday that dozens of
volunteers from the organization, along with firefighters, police
and members of the armed forces were fighting the fires.
According to a communique from the Valparaiso regional government,
five helicopters and an equal number of cistern aircraft are being
used to help control the fires.
"We have more than 20 homes damaged in at least four communities,
and as soon as these events are over we'll be able to calibrate
with exactness the impact of these fires," said the national
director of the Onemi emergency management office, Vicente Nuñez,
on Monday.
Just in Valparaiso, the fires have destroyed more than 2,000
hectares (5,000 acres), along with several homes, and firefighters
there have been forced to press all available personnel into
service.
In addition, the strong winds and high temperatures are making it
easy for the fires to spread in the Valparaiso region, where the
main zones affected have been San Antonio, Petorca, Marga-Marga
and Chile's second-largest city of Valparaiso.