Fires out of control in Bolivia and the United States // Mexico sends 103 firefighters to Canada for support

▲ A devastated block of flats in the town of Jasper, as a result of the wildfires that engulfed the town of 5,000 inhabitants and forced the evacuation of the national park.Photo Ap

AFP, Europa Press, Ap and Sputnik

The newspaper La Jornada
Saturday, July 27, 2024, p. 24

Hinton. Massive wildfires have destroyed about half of the historic Canadian town of Jasper, authorities said yesterday, and firefighters are trying to save as many buildings as possible.

At least 30 percent of the town, home to some 5,000 inhabitants, was destroyed by the flames, which are still considered out of control and have already consumed more than 36 thousand hectares.

Many homes and businesses have been lost.said Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, adding that some Jasper residents will not be able to return to their homes for several weeks.

The return of those who reside there it will be difficultThis is a indescribable pain, beyond understandinglamented Richard Ireland, mayor of Jasper.

There have been no casualties so far, as the 25,000 residents and tourists in the area were evacuated during the night from Monday to Tuesday, when the fire suddenly grew.

More than 400 firefighters from our friends in Australia, New Zealand, Mexico and South Africa are already on their way to fight the wildfires in Alberta.assured Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Mexico has sent 103 personnel to Canada to assist with the fires, the National Forestry Commission reported.

Meanwhile, in California, more than 1,600 Volcanoes were fighting yesterday by air and land a powerful and gigantic fire that was burning out of control in the north of the city; the conflagration forced the evacuation of thousands of people.

At the time of this edition’s closing, the fire had destroyed 66,484 hectares and continues to gain strength due to the severe weather conditions.

A suspect was arrested the day before yesterday for starting the fire after pushing a burning car off a cliff, Butte County District Attorney Mike Ramsey said in a statement.

Emergency in Santa Cruz

Meanwhile, the Bolivian government yesterday mobilized two Z9 helicopters equipped with water bags to put out the forest fires raging in the department of Santa Cruz.

We have around 292 personnel in Santa Cruz, yesterday (Thursday) 30 more forest firefighters arrivedreported the Minister of Defense, Edmundo Novillo. We need to raise awareness and also take the necessary actions to reverse this situation. We have a growing emergency, even more so with the winds that characterize Santa Cruz.said the governor of Santa Cruz, Mario Aguilera, and urged not only to contain the flames, but also not to provoke them.

A person has been caught red-handed setting fires in the department of Santa CruzGovernment Minister Eduardo del Castillo reported yesterday.

While in Asia, the fierce typhoon Gaemi The tsunami has left at least 34 dead in the Philippines and another seven dead and 785 injured in Taiwan, authorities confirmed.

The biggest impact in the Philippines was in the capital, Manila, which suffered one of the worst floods in more than a decade.

In Taiwan, around 700,000 homes were left without electricity and 88,000 without water, while more than 400 domestic and international flights were cancelled.

Yesterday, what was the typhoon Gaemi was heading into the interior of China after weakening to a severe tropical storm and making landfall on the east coast the previous night.

The storm toppled trees, flooded streets and damaged crops in China, but no fatalities or major damage have been reported so far.