SANTIAGO-Chile has declared a state of disaster in several central-southern regions after a devastating heat wave provoked forest fires that left at least five people dead, authorities said on Saturday. More than 100 homes have been affected and 29,000 hectares of forest destroyed since the fires broke out on Wednesday. Earlier, Interior Minister Carolina Toha said “four people died. They were moving in vehicles” in the Biobio region. Authorities later said a firefighter had also been killed. The government has declared a state of disaster in the regions of Nuble and Biobio, but fires have also affected the regions of Maule and La Araucania.
President Gabriel Boric decided to suspend his holidays to visit the affected area, where there are 178 active fires.
Of those, 39 are out of control.