Live
Audio Only
Hundreds of firefighters are trying to control the flames that spread due to the heat and wind gusts of over 90 kilometers per hour.
A fire allegedly caused by human negligence on Sunday has ravaged 10,000 hectares of forests in Rio Negro province in the Patagonia region.
RELATED:
Argentina: Congress Approves Extraordinary Tax on Large Fortunes
According to local authorities, the fire spread due to the heat and wind gusts of over 90 kilometers per hour.
Hundreds of firefighters deployed in the El Bolson area are trying to control the flames with two helicopters and one plane's help.
"The flames threaten to cross the border into the neighboring Chubut Province," Rio Negro Governor Arabela Carreras explained, highlighting the complexity faced by firefighters in putting out the blaze.
Active fire detected in Aguirre Department, Santiago del Estero Province, Argentina
— Aggi (Beta) ���� (@aggibot) January 26, 2021
lat/lon: -29.4723, -62.0228
Time: 2021-01-25 (14:02 UTC) pic.twitter.com/mR0kget1JI
"El Bolson is a mountainous area, and firefighters have no access to water refill," she said, adding that two families had to be evacuated after their homes were destroyed by the fire on Thursday.
According to local outlets, the hypothesis of the fire outbreak is that a neighbor left the fire unextinguished after making a barbecue.
"We have verified that theory from the air. The place where the fire started is a residence," Carreras stated after flying over the area affected by the "largest fire registered in the Patagonia region so far."
Local officials said they will investigate whether the fire was intentional. Meanwhile, they hope the blaze eases in the next few hours, as temperatures are expected to drop.
#Brazil | Deforestation in the Amazon is increasing each month.#JairBolsonaro #Environment pic.twitter.com/hZEalbsGdc
— teleSUR English (@telesurenglish) June 20, 2020
Newsletter
