2024-02-06 11:10:00
The number of deaths in the devastating fires that hit the region of Valparaíso, 100 kilometers west of Santiago, increased to 123, of which only 32 have been identified, the Legal Medical Service (SML) of Chile reported on Monday. Chilean President Gabriel Boric said on Sunday that the figure “is going to grow significantly” and that “it is the biggest tragedy we have experienced as a country since the earthquake of February 27, 2010.” “One of the most pressing emergencies is to recover the bodies of the people who have died,” said the president from Quilpué, one of the towns most affected by the flames.
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A registry of the Municipality of Viña del Mar, another city hit hard by the fire, estimates that there are more than 370 missing people, which does not imply that all of them are dead but does give an idea of the magnitude of the catastrophe.
LOOK: Chile: at least 99 dead leave the deadliest forest fires in the country in a decade
To avoid a dance of figures and with the aim of centralizing the information, the president instructed that the only official spokesperson that will provide updates on the number of deaths is SML.
Debris in the Pompeya irregular camp after the fires in Viña del Mar, Valparaíso Region, Chile. (EFE/ Ailen Díaz). People fight the fire with firefighters in the Las Palmas area, during the forest fires that affect Viña del Mar, Valparaíso region, Chile. (EFE/Ailen Díaz).
The institution explained in a statement that it “regrets the tragedy that the Valparaíso region is experiencing and informs that at this time all its technical, medical and administrative teams are present, with the support of professionals from Santiago, ready to face this emergency.”
According to the latest report from the National Forestry Corporation (CONAF), there are at least seven active fires currently in Valparaíso, the largest being the one in the Lago Peñuelas/Las Tablas Reserve, next to the main highway in the area, which is already It has burned about 9,300 hectares.
View of the Botanical Garden after a forest fire in Viña del Mar, Chile, taken on February 4, 2024. (Photo by Javier TORRES/AFP).
This fire, along with the one that is developing in Lo Moscoso, with 1,350 hectares burned, is of particular concern due to its virulence and its proximity to densely populated areas.
The Government decided to advance the curfew from 6:00 p.m. local time (9:00 p.m. GMT) in the sectors that have not yet been evacuated from the towns of Quilpué, Villa Alemana, Limache and Viña del Mar, a measure that seeks to facilitate rescue efforts and clear evacuation routes.
It is estimated that there are between 3,000 and 6,000 homes affected by the fire and the Ministry of Health decreed a health alert in the area.
People walk past burned vehicles after a forest fire in Quilpue, Viña del Mar, Chile, on February 4, 2024. (Photo by RODRIGO ARANGUA/AFP).
The authorities hope that the improvement in the weather conditions that are being recorded this Sunday, with a slight drop in temperatures and an increase in humidity, will help control the outbreaks that are still active and allow rescue services to enter in the most devastated areas.
Due to the simultaneity of the fires and the place where they started, authorities believe that several fires could have been intentional.
“It is difficult to think that there could be such miserable and heartless people capable of generating so much death and pain, but if these people exist, we are going to look for them, we are going to find them, and not only will the entire society, but also the entire society, have to face repudiation.” the full weight of the right and the law,” said Boric, who decreed two days of national mourning starting Monday.
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