A forest fire in North Chile’s port city of Valparaiso has destroyed at least 70 homes and forced the evacuation of more than 500 families.

At least 70 homes have been destroyed and more than 500 families have been forced to evacuate.

The blaze broke out on the city’s San Roque hill, some 75 miles northeast of the capital, Santiago.

Strong, changing winds and high temperatures at the peak of the Southern Hemisphere’s summer holiday season have made the fire worse.

Valparaiso’s regional governor Raul Celis described it as “the city’s worst blaze in two decades”.

Local television stations showed images of a towering plume of smoke billowing over the city.

The smoke kept firefighting aircraft grounded while more than a dozen firefighter units, 700 policemen and several army platoons continued to battle the fire five hours after it started.

Twenty-seven people, including five children, were being treated for minor injuries and smoke inhalation, said Claudio Fernandez, director of the local Van Buren hospital.

Police said they had arrested at least three people for looting.

Valparaiso is surrounded by dozens of hills, where most people live.

Authorities say the fire is concentrated near the hills and is still far away from the city’s low-lying centre.

Valparaiso Forest fire Video

[media id=824 width=610 height=340] [adrotate group=”10″]