The city of Valparaiso, the port’s most important tourist Chile, is in red alarm from the night of Tuesday as a result of the advance of an uncontrolled forest fire. More than 100 homes have been burnt and dozens of families had to be evacuated in full christmas Eve, while the firemen working around the clock to monitor the situation. There are No reports about victims.
The fire occurred in the hills of Rocuant and San Roque in the upper part of Valparaiso, and moved forward with violence from an area of grassland and trees to reach populations of houses of wood and tin, whose inhabitants were evacuated, reports Efe. The flames devoured everything in their path until get together about the population of The Island and reach the populated area on the outskirts. At least 40 hectares have been affected by the incident, while the fire threat to power supply lines of the city.
we are deeply saddened by the fire that affects so many families in the hills of Valparaíso, and especially on christmas eve. With the @IntendenciaV we are working without rest together with @conaf_minagri, @onemichile, Fire, and FF.AA to put out the fires.
— Sebastian Piñera (@sebastianpinera) December 25, 2019
The areas affected are the most populous and popular of Valparaiso, whose neighbors -who were preparing for the Christmas night – faced the fire together with 550 firefighters of 54 units of seven cities of the region, supported by 14 brigades, forest, civil and military, from the air, by four airplanes and 10 helicopters, says France Presse.
“has affected more than 100 homes. It is a very difficult situation in a very special night,” said Gonzalo Blumel, minister of the Interior in a press conference on Tuesday night at the National Emergency Office (Onemi) in Santiago de Chile. “We deeply regret the fire that affects so many families in the hills of Valparaíso, and especially on Christmas eve,” said president Sebastián Piñera on his official Twitter account.
The minister of Agriculture of Chile, Antonio Walker, who traveled to the area to coordinate the efforts of control and extinction, indicated to the press that the situation is “not easy” and is “very complicated by the wind.” “We are in the midst of combat. We believe that we have already lost hundred homes and we’re going to have to sacrifice some more in order to make a firebreak so the flames do not come where there is the greatest concentration of households,” said Walker.
view photo gallery Fight against the fire in one of the hills of Valparaiso, just before the christmas Eve dinner. Leandro Torchio EFE
The fire occurs more than two months after the beginning of a social explosion with massive mobilizations in demand of measures to address inequality, which has left 28 dead. Last November, another fire in Valparaiso destroyed more than 500 hectares and forced the evacuation of nearly half a hundred homes.
