Firefighters wrestled Sunday with massive forest fires that broke out in central Chile two days earlier, as officials extended curfews in cities most heavily affected by the blazes and said at least 64 people were killed.
As the number of dead rose by 13 from the previous day, President Gabriel Boric said the toll is likely to increase further.
“We know that figure is going to grow, it’s going to grow significantly,” Boric said in a televised speech to the nation.
The fires have been burning with the highest intensity around the city of Viña del Mar, where a famous botanical garden founded in 1931 was destroyed by the flames on Sunday. At least 1,600 people were left without homes.
Several neighbourhoods on the eastern edge of Viña del Mar have been devoured by flames and smoke, trapping some people in their homes. Officials said 200 people have been reported missing in Viña del Mar and the surrounding area. The city of 300,000 people is a popular beach resort and also hosts a famous music festival during the southern hemisphere’s summer.
Fires possibly set intentionally, governor says
Rodrigo Mundaca, the governor of the Valparaiso region, said Sunday that he believed some of the fires could have been intentionally caused, repeating a theory that had also been mentioned on Saturday by President Boric.
“These fires began in four points that lit up simultaneously,” Mundaca said. “As authorities we will have to work rigorously to find who is responsible.”
Rescue teams rushed to areas impacted by forest fires in Chile’s Valparaiso region as residents picked through the debris of destroyed houses and burned-out cars.
The fires around Viña del Mar began in mountainous forested areas that are hard to reach. But they have moved into densely populated neighbourhoods on the city’s periphery despite efforts by Chilean authorities to slow down the flames.
On Saturday, the president said unusually high temperatures, low humidity and high wind speeds were making it difficult to control the wildlfires, which have already burned through 8,000 hectares of forests and urban areas.
Curfews to prevent looting
Officials are asking people in areas affected by the fires to evacuate their homes as quickly as possible, while those farther from the fires are being told to stay at home in order to facilitate the transit of fire engines and ambulances.
Curfews have been declared in Viña del Mar and the neighbouring cities of Quilpué and Villa Alemana as part of an effort to prevent looting.
The fires broke out during a week of record high temperatures in central Chile. Over the past two months, the El Niño weather pattern has caused droughts and high temperatures in western South America that have also increased the risk of forest fires.