‘A Nightmare Without An End’

Fatal Fires Consume Thousands of Homes in Chile

• Up to 4,000 km² of forest and agricultural land and scores of farm animals have been consumed by the wildfires since November.

• The regions of O’Higgins and Maule, Bio Bio, Araucania and Los Lagos are among the most devastated areas.

• More than 1,000 homes have been destroyed in the city of Santa Olga, located about 360 km south of the capital, Santiago, forcing more than 6,000 residents to flee.

• About 4,500 fire crews are currently deployed to extinguish the wildfires.

• At least a dozen people, mostly fire crews and policemen, have lost their lives.

• “States of catastrophe” have been declared in regions of O’Higgins and El Maule.

• The authorities have reported about 3,000 fires in the drought-stricken regions since July, with more blazes forecast amid high temperatures, strong winds and low humidity.

• Dozens of blazes continue burning uncontrollably.

• The forest fires are said to be the worst in living memory to hit Chile.

• “This is an extremely serious situation—of horror, a nightmare without an end,” Carlos Valenzuela, the mayor of the coastal city of Constitucion told DW. “Everything’s burned.”