Dispatches from Chile: Massive Fires Ravage Southern Chile Part2

Recent photos and data from the New York Times

Gigantic wildfires in south central Chile
• so far destroyed more than 700,000 acres of forest land
• caused the government to declare a state of emergency in four regions
• caused 4,000 people — including firefighters, troops and national forestry bureau officers to be deployed to fight the fires
• more than 2,700 people have lost their homes
• thousands have been evacuated from the affected areas
• killed ten people, mainly firefighters and police

The wildfires are from 100 to 400 miles south of Nogales. The smoke from the fires obscures the sky for hundreds of miles.

http://ptatlarge.typepad.com/ptatlarge/2017/01/dispatches-from-chile-massive-fires-ravage-southern-chile.html#comments

 

Firefighters in Pumanque, 179 miles from Nogales, in the O’Higgins region, on Saturday; Hualañé, in central Chile, on Saturday. Hualañé is 203 miles from Nogales.

The remains of homes in Santa Olga, a small hamlet in the Maule region; Fires raged in Santa Olga on Wednesday. The hamlet was destroyed. Santa Olga is 404 miles from Nogales.

 
The central Chilean region of Bío Bío on Monday; Cajón del Maipo, southeast of the capital, Santiago, on Tuesday. Cajón del Maipo is 100 miles from Nogales. Nogales is 74 miles from Santiago.

 
Volunteers in Pumanque on Saturday. Some residents have used tree branches and bottles of water to try to douse the flames;Near the town of Florida, in Bío Bío region, on Monday, 364 miles from Nogales.

Nogales is 74 miles from Santiago.

Photos and data from New York Times

Comments

[Carolyn]

Have not heard from you in a while. Glad you are visiting Nogales again. Very sad about this big fire but we know about that sort of thing in California. Pictures are awful, very hard to fight those fires.

[Paul A. Tamburello, Jr. aka pt at large]

I've read about out of control fires in the western USA. The size of this one and the incineration of entire towns and immense areas of forest put it in another category altogether. It is amazing that the smoke and ash from fires from 100 t0 400 miles away make the mountains in this whole area look like they are shrouded in fog and deposit microscopic particles of ash here.
Like the TV and radio stations in USA, the stations here carry loops of the disaster all day and add new ones and give updated in present time and interview residents, politicians, firefighters and their families, business owners, anyone associated with the destruction.

[Mishy Lesser]

hi Paul. thanks for these upsetting posts. I've been so absorbed by the situation and protests here that I've only seen posts on Facebook from Chilean friends but didn't realize the colossal and catastrophic scope. are people in Chile connecting this to climate change? when are you coming home?

[Paul A. Tamburello, Jr. aka pt at large]

With all the political news, I'm not surprised that this massive, catastrophic wildfire has not made much of a splash in Boston although the NYT does update news about it.
I wonder what your Chilean friends say about it and hope none of them are in the path of the fires.

[Paul A. Tamburello, Jr. aka pt at large]

With all the political news, I'm not surprised that this massive, catastrophic wildfire has not made much of a splash in Boston although the NYT does update news about it.
The media here carry loops of the disaster all day but i don't speak Spanish so not sure if climate change is being discussed. I won't be surprised if it comes up once the fires are under control.

Have your Chilean friends said that climate change is in the news and hope none of them are in the path of the fires.

[Cathleen Cavanaugh]

Hi Paul,

Thanks so much for sending this update. It is so bizarre how I’ve heard so very little about this horrific event! Thank you for documenting this and being down there to help out.

I’m sure you can not escape hearing about all that is happening here. I went to the march last weekend in Boston (so powerful and peaceful!), and am now writing and calling all my representatives. Anything I can do, I’m doing.

Hope all is as good as can be with you, given the severity of the fire and smoke, and safety of everyone in its path.