Overview
- Officials report at least 15 deaths and more than 50,000 residents forced from their homes in the south.
- President Gabriel Boric declared a state of calamity for the Ñuble and Biobío regions to expedite the response.
- Firefighters and forest rangers are battling 12 active fires in the hardest-hit areas and seven additional blazes elsewhere.
- Authorities identify Penco and the Lirquén sector as the most critical zones with the largest evacuations, with images showing burned vehicles in the streets.
- The emergency comes during a run of severe wildfire seasons, including February 2024 fires that killed 138 people, according to the Prosecutor's Office.