Still the devastating Great Fire in the Chilean port city of Valparaiso is not deleted. Twelve people have been killed so far, about ten thousand are on the run from the flames.
The devastating Great Fire in the Chilean city of Valparaiso has so far claimed at least twelve lives. The fire raged at the weekend in the port city and destroyed, according to government figures, about two thousand buildings; around ten thousand people took in front of the flames to safety. A total of 850 hectares have been affected by the fire – this is an area about twice as large as the English Garden in Munich.
“The pictures are impressive, it is probably the worst fire in the history of Valparaiso,” said the Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, who had traveled to Valparaiso to get a picture of the disaster. She sent police and the military in the affected districts of the port city to prevent looting. The serving of alcohol was banned, in addition to teaching in the schools turn out on Monday, it said, according to the national civil protection ONEMI.
On Sunday – the second day of the fire – the flames appeared in the morning already to be under control. A few hours later, however, another 2000 people to safety had to be evacuated when the fire at three locations on the southern edge of the city broke out anew, like the radio transmitter Bío Bío reported.
Chile Valparaíso Fire:1250 firefighters in action
Complicating extinguishing the fire hydrants are missing and blocked access roads. 20 helicopters and planes to fight the flames from the air. ” This fire is neither today nor tomorrow can be deleted ,” it said in a tweet of the Chilean National Disaster Centre.
Three people suffered , according to Health Secretary Jaime Burrows severe burns. 500 people were treated for breathing problems by paramedics . The fight against the inferno going out of 1,250 firefighters. The government declared a state of emergency for the city. The destruction mainly affected six of the approximately 42 hills on which lives the majority of the 270,000 inhabitants of Valparaíso .
The fire had broken out on a 30 -acre landfill on the highway of Placilla on Saturday afternoon to Valparaíso . As a possible cause of the fire called eyewitnesses two turkey vultures , who settled on a high voltage line . The wind had brought together two cables , the vultures were burned there and the resulting spark could ignite the dry leaves on the ground, the news portal Emol reported, citing firefighters.
Chile Valparaíso Fire: “Worst disaster”
Sustained winds drove the flames wall in the evening on the inhabited hills of the city. “It is the worst disaster I’ve ever seen in Valparaíso,” said the chief administrator of the region, Ricardo Bravo.
Around two thousand marines and policemen were deployed on the streets to provide security. The inmates of the local prison were housed in a sports stadium, reported local media. Bachelet said because of the disaster from their planned for Tuesday abroad trip to Argentina.
Valparaíso is the largest port city of Chile, and the seat of parliament. The city on the hills was declared in 2003 by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. It is located about 120 kilometers northwest of the capital Santiago de Chile. It was only in February 2013 about a hundred homes had been destroyed in a fire in Valparaíso. Cause of the fire was arson at that time.
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