July 29, 2022, 2:01 PM
July 29, 2022, 2:01 PM
With information from: Juan Pablo Cahuana (correspondent)
The mayor of San Matías, Denny Carlos Velarde, reported this Friday to EL DEBER that gaps are being opened to prevent the fire, which has not yet been controlled and thus prevent it from entering the Community of San Fernando (distant 250 kilometers from San Matías), while the containment work of the helicopter of the Vice Ministry of Civil Defense continues, with aerial discharges of water.
“All possible efforts are being made even when The Ángel Sandoval province has been declared in a state of emergency due to drought and forest fires.”expressed the authority, in time to indicate that they are working jointly with Civil Defense, the Government of Santa Cruz, ABT and Sernap.
According to Velarde, several sources of heat have been detected 20 kilometers from the community of San Fernando, which have been contained and that the fire advances on the mount in an area where there are curichis of difficult access. “We hope that it will be settled soon and it will not affect this area any more. In Candelaria, which was affected last year, there are still no hot spots, let’s hope it stays that way,” the authority concluded.
According to the ABT report, the fire has consumed 2,060 hectares of grassland and has not affected wooded areas. According to satellite data, the fire originated in the San Cristóbal hacienda, it is still unknown if it was caused or due to natural causes.
The Vice Minister of Civil Defense, Juan Carlos Calvimontes, has been working in the area since Wednesday along with a group of 75 people, including forest firefighters, who are open defense lines. The authority indicated that the ceasefire will take a couple of days and that It is sought that I do not reach any population or enter the AMNI-San Matías nature reserve.
Likewise, The Government of Santa Cruz inaugurated this Friday a Departmental Emergency Operations Center to deal with forest fires throughout the department.
The Secretary for Sustainable Development and the Environment, Jhonny Rojas, explained that it has been equipped with the appropriate technology for the preparation of maps, and that it will allow the allocation of economic funds, personnel, tools, equipment and heavy machinery. The department of Santa Cruz is currently on orange alert.
