The Chilean government reported that 16 people died in forest fires ravaging the country. The disaster occurs in the regions of Ñuble and Biobío, as reported this Sunday (18) by the Minister of Public Security, Luis Cordero, according to the Efe agency.
President Gabriel Boric declared a state of catastrophe in the affected areas and suspended his official agenda for Monday. The Minister of the Interior, Álvaro Elizalde, confirmed that the president will personally travel to the location to coordinate emergency actions.
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In a gesture of unity, the president-elect, José Antonio Kast, stated that the focus must be on fighting the fire and supporting the victims, highlighting that there is no room for political disputes during the emergency.
“Today the focus must be on fighting the fires, helping those affected and supporting the authorities to face this emergency,” added Kast, who will take office in March and this week will announce his cabinet.
Thousands of homeless
The tragedy has already forced the displacement of around 30,000 people, especially in the commune of Penco, located 500 km south of the capital, Santiago. The Biobío region concentrates most of the fatalities, with 15 deaths recorded so far.
The regional governor, Sergio Giacaman, compared the scale of the catastrophe to the 2010 earthquake, one of the most traumatic events in recent Chilean history.
According to preliminary data from the National Forestry Corporation (Conaf), the fire has already consumed around 5 thousand hectares in the Penco sector alone, while in Ñuble the trail of destruction exceeds 4 thousand hectares. Fighting the flames is made difficult by the weather phenomenon known as the “Puelche wind”. This wind, which is dry and hot, blows from the Andes Mountains and drastically reduces humidity, creating an environment highly conducive to the spread of new outbreaks.
Fires have worsened since 2010
Although fires are recurrent in Chile due to its topography, the frequency and intensity of these disasters has increased significantly since 2010. The country still bears scars from the February 2024 tragedy in the Valparaíso region, when 136 people lost their lives in unprecedented forest fires in the country.
