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Bolivia battles record wildfires, with worst most likely ahead

Bolivia is facing a record number of fires in the first 7 months of the year, satellite information showed on Thursday, as the flames send villagers running away, eliminate wildlife and char the landscape.

Diesel lacks across the nation are more complicating firefighting efforts by making it harder to reach remote areas and deal with the blazes, regional charities stated.

Bolivia registered approximately 17,700 fire points from January through July, the most ever seen because duration in the country, according to data from Brazil's space research firm Inpe, which keeps an eye on fires in all of South America.

There have actually been a record number of regular monthly fire points in Bolivia for 3 consecutive months through July, according to Inpe.

The continent overall is bracing for an intense fire season, as a dry spell driven by environment change has dried out plant life in much of the area. The worst of the dry season lies ahead, with wildfires generally peaking in August and September, Inpe information reveal.

Some of the largest fires so far have actually been in far eastern Bolivia, a region dominated by dry leaf forests and the Pantanal, the world's largest wetlands.

In Robore, a town in the lowland area of Santa Cruz severely affected by July's blazes, video footage showed charred animals along roadsides and villagers leaving thick plumes of smoke.

I ran as fast as I could, I was fortunate enough to conserve myself, stated one farmer in Robore, who had escaped from a. burning tractor and did not give his name.

The town is approximately 200 km (124 miles) from the Gran Chaco. national forest, home to jaguars and guanacos, and is surrounded. by farms that raise livestock and harvest crops like corn and rice.

Robore Mayor Jose Diaz Ruiz stated reservoir levels had been. succumbing to 2 months.

It hasn't rained, he said. Fire has consumed our. forests.

The scale of the fires in Bolivia significantly increased last. month. Major blazes with emissions noticeable on satellite images. began to break out on July 18, according to information assembled by. nonprofit Amazon Preservation.

EARLIER DRY SEASON

Environment change is triggering the dry season - usually from. July to October - to start earlier, said Natalia Calderon,. director of non-profit Fundación Amigos de la Naturaleza. ( FAN-Bolivia).

Shifting rain patterns, high winds and the dry spell trigger the. blazes to spread faster and last longer, she stated.

Simply throughout the border, Brazil has actually been fighting fires in. the Pantanal that have burned a record location so far this year. Brazil's Amazon rain forest has actually also taped its greatest number. of blazes since 2005.

Venezuela, Guyana and Suriname have actually likewise seen the most fires. ever in the first seven months of the year, Inpe information show.

Bolivia's ecological destruction has surged in recent. years, ranking 3rd for tropical primary forest loss in 2023. after Brazil and the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to. the Global Forest Watch keeping track of initiative.

Fires typically follow deforestation in the area, as. farmers clear land for cattle pasture or crops.

The Bolivian government did not react to a Reuters demand. for comment on the causes of the wildfires.

Vice Minister of Civil Defense, Juan Carlos Calvimontes,. stated in a statement to reporters that authorities had actually alerted. ranchers and farmers to be careful using fire provided the dry. conditions.

Calderon and other ecologists cautioned versus. overstating agriculture's role, stating that fires for waste. disposal and home heating were likewise an element.

(source: Reuters)