Buenos Aires:
Firefighters in Argentina had been battling an “uncontrolled” blaze in a nationwide park in Patagonia on Saturday, struggling to maintain it from reaching two close by cities.
The hearth in Los Alerces Nationwide Park — a UNESCO World Heritage Web site — has already charred about 600 hectares (1500 acres).
“The hearth is uncontrolled,” mentioned Mario Cardenas, head of the park’s fireplace, communications and emergency division.
Situations are “unfavorable as a result of we nonetheless have numerous wind and excessive temperatures. This makes our work very tough,” he mentioned.
Temperatures in Patagonia, a usually chilly and windy area in Argentina’s far south, have topped 40 levels Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) within the southern hemisphere summer season, with two provinces declaring states of emergency because of fireplace danger till April.
Chubut province rescue employees had been making an attempt to dam flames from reaching the cities of Esquel and Trevelin, about 2,000 kilometers (1,242 miles) southwest of Buenos Aires.
Los Alerces Park options glacier-carved landscapes together with rivers and lakes, and pristine forests of alerce bushes, the second-longest residing tree species on this planet.
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