Fires in Patagonia already affect more than 25,000 hectares.

The fires in Patagonia, which have been burning in multiple areas since December and mobilizing hundreds of firefighters, have now reached a surface of over 25,000 hectares.

So far, they have claimed one fatality and left a hundred houses burned down last week. Adding up all the fires in the provinces of Neuquén, Río Negro, and Chubut, the total area is equivalent to that of Buenos Aires City.

Fires in Patagonia: the devastated hectares

“It’s certain” that this is one of the seasons with the greatest forest loss in a long time, said Hernán Giardini, coordinator of the Greenpeace Argentina Forests campaign, to AFP, who warned: “Besides, February is still to come.”

Three people arrested for the fires in El Bolsón. (Photo: X).

The affected land is now more than three times the surface area of Andean Patagonian forests affected in the summer 2023/2024. Back then, 7747 hectares were lost, according to a report by the NGO.

“Everything indicated a challenging summer,” Giardini stated. He pointed out that for months it had been shaping up to be a season with “many days of high temperatures and strong winds.” This adds to a “period of drought in the region” due to the La Niña weather phenomenon.

One of the most affected areas by “adverse weather conditions” is the Magdalena Valley of Lanín National Park, in Neuquén. Over 5000 hectares of forest were affected in the 216,000-hectare park.

“Yesterday, the wind fueled several points,” said Luciana Ortiz Luna, Secretary of Emergencies and Disaster Management of the province, to the local press on Thursday.

Reinforcements

The Single Operations Coordination (CUO) activated a red alert on Wednesday afternoon to summon firefighters from the central region of the country to assist the brigades already mobilized in Neuquén, which did not require evacuations, according to a statement.

The chief of the firefighters traveled to the area with 46 brigadiers to “bring relief and fresher personnel” because “the people on site are at the limit of their operational and physical capacity,” said Gustavo Nicola, national director of the CUO.

Meanwhile, in the Nahuel Huapi National Park, located between the provinces of Neuquén and Río Negro, the fires began at the end of last December with over 10,700 hectares affected.

“Those forests will have a hard time recovering. It could take 200 years in Nahuel Huapi or Lanín,” Giardini pointed out.

Meanwhile, in Chubut, two fires remain active since mid-January: near the town of Atilio Viglione, 3200 hectares have been affected, while in Epuyén, they have already covered 3500 hectares.

Fires in Patagonia: the devastating statistics. (Photo: NA).

Intentional Fires: Accusations and Arrests

The governors of Chubut, Ignacio Torres, and Río Negro, Alberto Weretilneck, stated that the origin of most of the fires “was intentional.”

The Police arrested three people on Wednesday in El Bolsón. The intentional nature of the fires had already been confirmed, and the authorities proceeded with the investigation.

After identifying and capturing them in Río Negro, disturbances broke out in front of the police station. A group of people approached to demand the release of the detainees, leading to a confrontation with neighbors and law enforcement.

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