Ferocious wildfires surrounded a resort city in Argentina overnight, forcing the mass evacuation of hundreds of families during an intense heatwave.
Alarming footage shows a wall of flames tearing towards the resort city of Villa Carlos Paz, with a population of 56,000, in the Punilla Valley of the central Cordoba province as temperatures reached 35C.
Almost 1,000 firefighters are tackling the inferno, which broke out on Monday. Emergency teams have been using eight firefighting planes and two helicopters and have been helped by members of the public using buckets and hoses.
A 27-year-old man accused of starting the fire has been detained, according to local media. It has been reported the suspect told police he started a campfire to make coffee and lost control of the flames due to strong winds.
A volunteer of a local fire service told The Telegraph: “Currently a dozen homes have been totally or partially destroyed by the fire.
“Three hundred people have been compulsorily evacuated, and 300 have self-evacuated. Civilians are suffering breathing difficulties, and there are a large number of dead farm animals. The fire remains active.”
A total of 960 firefighters were working to combat the wildfires— (AP)
The governor of Cordoba, Juan Schiaretti, urged people to leave their homes.
He said: “I call on the population to respect the indications of the firefighters and authorities who are working in the affected areas.
People look at a wildfire that has forced the evacuation of residents— (Reuters)
A man carries a bucket of water to help fight the forest fire behind him— (AP)
“The most important thing is to save lives, wherever evacuation is necessary, it will be done.”
There were five active wildfires in the region Tuesday, according to Argentina‘s National Fire Management Service.
Images and video from the area showed massive flames in hills surrounding populated areas, with the blaze reaching some homes in the region.
People have been urged to evacuate areas by the city’s governor— (AP)
The fire was said to have been started by a camper making coffee— (Reuters)
The Cordoba administration said it had sent trucks with potable waters, food, mattresses and blankets to the affected areas.
“We request that prevention measures be taken to the highest degree, as the weather conditions are adverse,” Cordoba’s government and security minister Julian Lopez said.
This year, Argentina has been impacted by an unprecedented drought exacerbated by high temperatures linked to climate change. It leaves the country’s forests at risk of wildfires.
