The expert warned that the scale of the fires in Bolivia is beyond the ability to intervene

Size forest fires that are affecting Chiquitania and the Bolivian Amazon “are beyond any ability to contain them,” Spanish firefighter and president of the NGO SOS Wildfire Ignacio Martín Diego, who works in the area, told EFE in an interview.

The expert mentioned that the problem is “not so much the intensity and virulence” of the fires as their size, as they become uncontrollable because the South American country does not have enough personnel and resources to appease them.

Martín Diego arrived in Bolivia in the middle of this month to “accompany and advise” the Spanish contingent of 41 forest firefighters who set foot on Bolivian soil a few days ago to respond to the emergency through the support of the European Union.

“What caught the most attention (of the delegation) is the size of the fires and the fires grapes ecological disaster“, he held.

The Spaniard and his organization concentrated their work in the municipality of Concepción, home to the Jesuit missions declared a World Heritage Site, for the benefit of communities affected by fire, smoke and pollution.

“We focused primarily on protecting vulnerable areas, whether it’s houses, farmland, land where livestock can be” and “in areas that have significant value,” economic or cultural, he said.

In Concepción, the fire surrounded several indigenous villages to the point that they “were trapped on two fronts”, meaning a “very difficult” situation for the inhabitants, who had to live with the smoke and heat generated by the flames, pointed out Enrique Diego.

The fireman said that many times the fires hit the only access and exit route to the villages, which prevented the evacuation of people, so it was decided to “close” people in the same threatened area.

This specialist explained that it is one thing to work on a fire and quite another to “put out” this fire, which requires “working in an orderly manner so that everyone’s efforts add up and the goal is achieved.”

“Community members have a great desire to do things, they get involved in everything to protect their communities, but these people They do not have the necessary preparation or security“, he noted.

“It can’t be that we found people working in rubber boots, working in short sleeves (t-shirts and pants), working in synthetic clothing, with the danger severe burns“, you lamented.

In communities, people “don’t have the minimum equipment” or have anyone prepared to know how to guide them in the face of this adversity, so joint efforts are many times in vain because they are not properly coordinated, he added.

“If it happens repeatedly (and) the same thing happens year after year, then it must exist basic problemand that a solution needs to be found,” he reflected.

He also stressed the need to work with vulnerable communities on fire prevention, environmental education and training “so that people are prepared and have the appropriate knowledge” in the face of this disaster.

Earlier this month, the Bolivian government declared “national emergency” for fires, allowing the country to receive international aid.

The executive said in its last report in early September that the fires had hit 3.8 million hectaresbut the Santa Cruz government said in its report on Friday that an area of ​​7 million hectares has been devastated in that department alone.

The fires, which started in May, are caused by legal burning or ‘chaqueos’ to enable the country for planting, livestock or clearing.

According to the Brazilian Institute for Space Research (INPE), fires recorded so far in 2024 exceeded 350,370, the worst in the last 15 years in South Americaas they exceed the values ​​reported in 2023 (344,391).