Wildfires Ravage Southern Chile, Killing 19 and Displacing Over 50,000

Wildfires Ravage Southern Chile, Killing 19 and Displacing Over 50,000

Uncontrolled wildfires sweeping across southern Chile have left at least 19 people dead and forced more than 50,000 residents from their homes, authorities confirmed on Sunday, as firefighters struggled against fierce winds and soaring temperatures.

The blazes, burning for a second straight day, have torn through communities in the Nuble and Biobio regions, roughly 500 kilometres south of Santiago. Entire neighbourhoods have been reduced to ashes, leaving behind a grim landscape of scorched houses, twisted metal and burned-out vehicles.

In the coastal town of Penco, where most of the fatalities have been reported so far, survivors described terrifying scenes as flames advanced with little warning. “Around 2:30 in the morning, the fire was completely out of control,” said Matías Cid, a 25-year-old student who narrowly escaped. “A whirlwind of fire came down and swallowed the houses. We left with just the clothes we were wearing. Another 20 minutes and we wouldn’t be alive.”

Nearby Lirquén, a port town of about 20,000 people, suffered similar devastation. Residents said the fire moved “in seconds,” giving many barely enough time to flee. Some escaped by running towards the sea. “People survived because they made it to the beach,” said Alejandro Arredondo, 57. “Nothing else was left standing.”

As night fell, soldiers patrolled the streets of Lirquén, enforcing a curfew imposed in the worst-hit areas. Even so, some residents continued working in the dark, using flashlights to clear debris or extinguish small flare-ups.

President Gabriel Boric declared a state of emergency in both Nuble and Biobio, authorising the deployment of the armed forces to support nearly 4,000 firefighters battling the infernos. He travelled to Concepción, one of the hardest-hit cities, to monitor operations on the ground and later announced nighttime curfews, warning that conditions remained “very difficult.”

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Before returning to Santiago, Boric said he would meet president-elect José Antonio Kast to coordinate information and response efforts. “In difficult times, Chile stands united,” he said.

Emergency officials said evacuations were concentrated mainly in Penco and Lirquén, which together are home to around 60,000 people. Weather forecasts offered little relief, predicting continued high temperatures and strong winds — conditions that complicate firefighting efforts.

Chile has faced increasingly destructive wildfire seasons in recent years, a trend authorities and scientists link to climate change, prolonged droughts and extreme weather. In February 2024, a series of fires near Viña del Mar killed 138 people and affected about 16,000 others, marking one of the country’s deadliest natural disasters in recent memory.

As crews continue to battle the flames, officials warned the death toll could rise, with full assessments still underway in several devastated communities.