Fires in Roboré threaten three communities and a protected area

A fire that started this Saturday, the 20th, in the municipality of Roboré, has spread, this Sunday, to the communities of San Lorenzo Nuevo, San Lorenzo Viejo and Naranjal. It has also entered the Tucabaca Natural Heritage Conservation Unit (UCPN), reported Rubén Darío Arias, president of the Tucabaca Park Management Committee. But it is not the only fire. A second fire is located within the Tucabaca protected area.

Arias regrets that there are few forest firefighters and that bureaucracy delays the help they need. The San Lorenzo Viejo community is threatened by flames, So this Sunday they asked for an ambulance to evacuate its inhabitants. He misses firefighters from the Governor’s Office and the Municipality, who have not yet arrived.

Although access to these communities is not difficult, communication is; Arias explains that the telephone signal “bounces,” which makes it difficult to get news from the area.

He has made arrangements with Ferroviaria Oriental so that they Support with water, which can be used to fill backpacks and tanks with which to fight the fire. However, he knows that it will not be enough.

In the case of fire in the Tucabaca valley, access is very difficult, But firefighters will have to find ways to do so, otherwise the flames could spread even further.

Arias points out that the The area has been facing drought for months and stresses the need for intervention by authorities at all levels; however, he asks that “protocols be abandoned” and immediate attention be provided to avoid further damage.

For firefighting work in the area, it is necessary fuel, water and energizers/rehydrators. To receive this help, you can contact the cell phone number 72187039.

Until this Sunday they were identified 2,103 photos of heat in Bolivia and four active fires in the department of Santa Cruz, reported the Deputy Minister of Civil Defense, Juan Carlos Calvimontes, on Bolivia TV.

“Santa Cruz has 1,849 hot spots, Beni 189, and 90% are in these two departments,” he said.

In the report that Calvimontes presented, fires were detailed in: the community The Syrians (San José de Chiquitos), Pozones (San Matías) and in El Puente. According to the authorities, 128 military personnel had been deployed.

He later added the report of the Roboré fireto which he indicated that he would send personnel to verify its existence.

“While these fires exist, we can determine We are not yet at a critical stage. All the fires are being dealt with by our firefighters from the armed forces and from other local actors, such as municipal governments, departmental governments, forest firefighters, etc., but the majority of firefighters (come from) our armed forces,” said the vice minister.

On the other hand, Calvimontes referred to the droughts and noted that they affect 550 communities in 37 municipalities. He also said that 15 municipalities have declared a state of municipal disaster and that seven departments have been affected by hail and frost.