Worst Wildfires in Chile's History

Alan Taylor
January 26, 2017
24 Photos
In Focus

The Chilean government has asked for international assistance and declared a state of emergency in some southern regions, after the worst forest fires in the nation’s history have destroyed hundreds of thousands of acres of forest, forced thousands to flee, and burned villages and farms to the ground. Decades of drought have worsened this year’s fire season, leading to as many as 85 major fires burning concurrently across Chile today, overwhelming local agencies.

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Fire is seen along a road in the town of Hualane during a big forest fire, on the outskirts of the Curico city, Chile, on January 21, 2017. #

Cristobal Hernandez / Reuters

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A villager watches a forest fire in the town of Florida in the Biobio region of Chile on January 23, 2017. #

Juan Gonzalez / Reuters

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A forest fire in Vichuquen, 283 km south of Santiago, on January 24, 2017. #

Martin Bernetti / AFP / Getty

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A man stands with his face covered in Santa Olga, Chile, on January 26, 2017. Chilean officials say that the town of Santa Olga was consumed in the flames of the country's worst wildfires, but its 6,000 residents escaped unharmed. The flames engulfed the post office, a kindergarten, and hundreds of homes on Thursday. #

Javier Torres / AP

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Fire is seen on a hill in a town called Pirque, on the outskirts of Santiago, Chile, on January 20, 2017 #

Javier Torres / Aton Chile / Reuters

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Firefighters work to put out a fire in Pumanque, 140 km south of Santiago on January 21, 2017. #

Martin Bernetti / AFP / Getty

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Firefighters are pictured during a forest fire in the town of Florida in the Biobio region of Chile on January 23, 2017. #

Juan Gonzalez / Reuters

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Smoke from forest fires is seen rising above a town called Pumanque in the O’Higgins region of Chile on January 20, 2017. #

Moises Catrilaf / National Institute of Agricultural Development / Reuters

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People react to the advancement of a forest fire in Hualañe, a community in Concepcion, Chile, on January 25, 2017. #

Alejandro Zoñez / AP

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Villagers are seen during a forest fire in the town of Litueche in the O'Higgins region on January 24, 2017. #

Carlos Vera / Reuters

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Villagers are seen with their belongings in the street, after they left their houses because of a forest fire in the town of Vichuquen on January 25, 2017. #

Cristobal Hernandez / Reuters

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Firefighters work to put out a forest fire in Pumanque, 140 km south of Santiago on January 21, 2017. #

Martin Bernetti / AFP / Getty

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Firefighters walk down a ladder while working to control a fire in Valparaiso, Chile, on January 2, 2017. The fire, driven by strong winds, swept through forest land in the hills outside the Chilean port of Valparaiso, destroying dozens of homes, sending a pall of heavy smoke down onto the city and driving the authorities to evacuate hundreds of people. #

Luis Hidalgo / AP

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A firefighter covers a baby with a mask next to his mother during a forest fire in the town of Penco in the Concepcion region, on January 25, 2017. #

Juan Gonzalez / Reuters

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A villager is seen carrying his belongings next to a car along a street, after fleeing his house during a forest fire in the town of Santa Olga in the Maule region of Chile on January 25, 2017. Picture taken January 25, 2017. #

Pablo Sanhueza / Reuters

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A farmer is seen outside of his house during a forest fire in the town of Empedrado, in the Maule region of Chile on January 24, 2017. #

Pablo Sanhueza / Reuters

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A man stands in front of a burned house and a dead dog in Santa Olga, Chile, on January 26, 2017. #

Pablo Sanhueza / Reuters

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Smoke from the forest fire is seen from the town of Penco in the Concepcion region on January 25, 2017. #

Juan Gonzalez / Reuters

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A forest fire is seen in a hill of the town of Cajon del Maipo, on the outskirts of Santiago on January 24, 2017. #

Carlos Vera / Reuters

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A man helps put out a fire in Pumanque, 140 km south of Santiago on January 21, 2017. #

Martin Bernetti / AFP / Getty

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A firefighter stands next to burned houses after a forest fire in the town of Nirivilo in the Maule region on January 25, 2017. #

Nicolas Martinez / Reuters

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In this January 21, 2017 photo, a forest fire burns in Pumanque, Chile. #

Esteban Felix / AP

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People watch the city of Santiago blanketed by smoke caused by forest fires on January 20, 2017. #

Martin Bernetti / AFP / Getty

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People react while standing next to burnted homes as the worst wildfires in Chile's modern history ravage wide swaths of the country's central-south regions, in Santa Olga, Chile, on January 26, 2017. #

Pablo Sanhueza / Reuters

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