Ecuador declares 60-day state of emergency to help fight wildfires | Climate News

The minister said the state of emergency would allow the government to send more money and help people control the fires.

Ecuador has declared a 60-day state of emergency as the South American country faces a severe drought and record wildfires that have devastated large areas in recent weeks.

Ecuador’s Secretariat for Risk Management (SNGR), the country’s emergency management agency, said in a statement on Monday that a state of emergency had been declared “due to forest fires, water deficit and drought.”

Environment Minister Ines Manzano said this would allow the government to mobilize funds and send more people to help fight the fires.

SNGR also stated that this regulation, approved by the Ministry of Environment, Water and Ecological Transition, will allow the release of funds to overcome the multifaceted crisis.

Authorities are battling 17 active wildfires primarily affecting the Azuay and Loja provinces in southern Ecuador. The secretariat said five more fires were recently brought under control.

Fires in the two provinces affected approximately 10,200 hectares (25,204 acres) of forest and land.

In September, a raging forest fire threatened the country’s capital, Quito, by covering it in smoke and ash. More than 2,000 firefighters, rescue workers and military members were called to evacuate residents and fight the blaze.

Ecuador is experiencing its worst drought in 60 years, which is affecting water levels in hydroelectric dams, the source of more than 70 percent of the country’s electricity.

Since October, the government has been forced to impose daily power cuts of up to 14 hours a day as it urges its 17 million people to save energy.

according to Global Fire Information System (GWIS)Ecuador’s wildfire danger forecast, which tracks wildfires around the world, is expected to increase from high to extreme in affected provinces.

Record-breaking fires have also broken out in other countries in South America, including Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela, Bolivia and Peru, as the region is hit by severe drought.

US space agency NASA reported that clouds of smoke It was visible from space in various parts of the region from July to October due to fires that broke out during the flooding of rivers in the Amazon basin. record low levels last month.

The drought, which has been getting worse since the second half of 2023, is associated with the El Nino weather event and climate change.