Chilean President Gabriel Boric has ordered two days of national mourning for those killed in the country’s wildfires.
64 people have died in the devastating fires in the Valparaíso region, 100 kilometers east of Santiago. The Chilean president assured that the number “will increase significantly.”
“It is the biggest tragedy we have experienced as a country since the February 27, 2010 earthquake,” Boric said from Quilpué, a town hit hard by the flames.
Likewise, Gabriel Boric emphasized that “one of the most urgent emergencies is to recover the bodies of deceased people.”
Due to the tragic situation in which the country finds itself, the President declared national mourning from Monday, February 5th: “I have decreed two days of national mourning starting Monday, because all of Chile is suffering and mourning our dead.” Know that you will not be alone, that the government, the state and the solidarity of Chileans, which is always present in these difficult times , will be with you. “We will rise again.”
Photo: AFP
The Chilean government mentioned that only the forensic medical service would report on the deceased
Due to misinformation, the President announced that from now on the Legal Medical Service (SML) would be the only official spokesperson that would provide updated information on the number of deaths.
According to the latest report from the National Forestry Corporation (Conaf), there are currently at least seven active fires in Valparaíso, the largest of which is the one in the Lago Peñuelas/Las Tablas Natural Reserve, next to the main road in the area, which has already burned about 9,300 hectares .
It is estimated that between 3,000 and 6,000 homes have been affected by the fire and the Ministry of Health has ordered a health alert in the area.
The mayor of Viña del Mar, one of the cities hardest hit by the fire, also said that the municipality is keeping a preliminary register of 372 missing people, which does not mean all are dead but gives an idea of the scale of the tragedy.
Photo: AFP
What does national mourning mean?
National mourning means that government headquarters, public offices and departments, as well as units of the armed forces and carabineros must fly the national flag at half-mast during the duration of the measure.
Government ceremonies that were intended to be celebratory are also suspended. People from society can also voluntarily join in the honor.
It is worth noting that national mourning does not mean a ban on citizens.
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