International Fire News

[NJFFSA16]

MADRID, Spain (Reuters) - The raging forest fires of recent
weeks claimed their first victims in Spain when five members of
the same family were found dead Monday, apparently after trying
to flee their home, which was surrounded by flames.
"Five burned bodies were found on a road in the forest. It
appears as though a family tried to escape their home," said a
spokesman for firefighters in the northeastern Catalonia
region.
Emergency workers suspect the five may have died or passed
out from smoke inhalation then were burned.
"It really was an unfortunate case because the house where
they lived remained intact. It was not affected by the fire ...
Everything leads us to believe they left the house of their own
will, locked up the house, and probably died of asphyxiation,"
Artur Mas, chief councilor of the Catalonia regional
government, told reporters.
The fire in Sant Llorenc Savall, in Barcelona province in
northeastern Spain, has forced about 500 people to evacuate
their homes and has burned 3,250 acres of forest, the Catalonia
regional government said Monday.
"The fire is not yet under control," the statement said.
Another fire in nearby Gallifa has forced the evacuation of
250 to 300 people, and a third fire was reported to have broken
out in l'Albiol, the Catalan government said.
Forest fires have affected much of Europe and consumed more
than 50,000 hectares in Spain so far this year in a record heat
wave with temperatures often soaring above 104 degrees
Fahrenheit.
The heatwave has claimed more than 20 lives in Spain,
officials said. In addition, one Spanish firefighter died of a
heart attack while in action.

Reut12:06 08-11-03

[NJFFSA16]

PARIS (AP) - Some French vintners started their earliest
harvests ever Tuesday and a fire near a railroad station in Germany
delayed trains - some of the latest difficulties Europe faces as a
deadly heat wave scorches the continent.
French utility giant EDF asked customers to shut off lights and
take other steps to conserve electricity in what meteorologists say
is one of Europe's hottest summers in generations.
Power plants in Germany and France were granted temporary
government approval to discharge water into rivers at higher
temperatures than normal. In France, a limited number of power
plants have reduced their energy output or shut down altogether.
"We are mobilizing all possible means to develop production,"
Francois Roussely, EDF chairman, told RTL radio. "The biggest
danger would be to lose electricity."
The head of France's emergency hospital physicians' association
said at least 100 people in France alone have died of heat-related
illnesses since a stifling blanket of hot air settled over Europe.
Temperatures have hovered around 100 in many countries for days,
breaking heat records across Europe.
Patrick Pelloux called on the Red Cross and even the army to
lend a hand to medical facilities stretched to their limits.
"We are in an extremely difficult and tragic situation,"
Pelloux said. "With more people, we would be able to save lives."
France Info Radio reported that 500 people had been admitted to
emergency rooms in the Paris region with heat-related illnesses.
Health Ministry spokesman Mathieu Monnet said it was difficult
to determine if the deaths were weather-related but statistics on
the number of deaths were being compiled.
Outside France, authorities have counted about 45 heat-related
deaths. On Monday, five people died in Spain while fleeing a fire.
Wildfires fanned by hot winds have eaten up tens of thousands of
acres of territory in Italy, France, Greece, Spain, Portugal,
Croatia, and the Netherlands.
Algeria dispatched more than 80 firefighters and more than a
dozen water tanker trucks to the French Mediterranean port city of
Marseille to help battle fires in southeast France.
Italian firefighters were battling 21 blazes in numerous
regions, officials there said. Alpine rescue teams helped evacuate
about 100 hikers whose path was blocked by a fire near the town of
Misurina, 90 miles north of Venice.
In Germany, national railroad Deutsche Bahn said a fire that
broke out early Tuesday near Hamburg's Altona station delayed 15
trains but was extinguished within an hour.
Train service between Berlin and the eastern city of Halle
returned to normal overnight after overhead wires had to be
switched off late Monday to allow rescue services access to a
forest fire, the German national railroad said.
High temperatures also caused spikes in pollution. Reduced speed
limits went into effect in areas of southern Switzerland because of
high ozone levels.
Nature's rhythms also were disturbed: The harvest began weeks
earlier than usual in France's Beaujolais winemaking region, where
grapes have ripened quickly under a pounding sun.
Three vintners asked authorities for permission to start the
harvest Tuesday in the central French region known for its light,
fruity wines. Many more winemakers plan to begin harvesting
Thursday, said Anne Masson of the Interprofessional Union of
Beaujolais Wines.
The Beaujolais harvest has never come so early in the season.
Before now, the earliest harvest was in 1893, when it began Aug.
25. Usually, ripe grapes are gathered sometime in September.
Grouse hunters in Scotland were warned Tuesday that the birds
might be hard to find because they may have gone off looking for
water.
Britain's Environment Agency said Tuesday it rescued about 1,000
fish from a river in western England that had dried up, leaving the
fish stranded in small pools with dwindling oxygen supplies.
Italian weather experts say Europe's heat wave is one of the
five worst in the last 150 years. Intense monsoon activity in
Africa has been blamed in part for the merciless temperatures.
However, forecasters predict relief in coming days.
The Royal Meteorological Institute in Belgium said temperatures
Thursday and Friday should be only in the high 70s.
Meteo France said temperatures throughout France were expected
to drop by midweek - although they would remain well above average.
Forecasters were predicting a high of 84 for Thursday in the French
capital.
The German Weather Service forecast falling temperatures over
the next two days with Wednesday's expected arrival of a cold front
from Scandinavia.

(Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[NJFFSA16]

Wildfires hit southern France
NIMES, France, July 27 (Reuters) - Wildfires swept through
the Gard region of southern France near Nimes on Tuesday,
destroying more than 700 hectares (1,700 acres) of scrub and
forcing dozens of people from their homes, officials said.
Interior Minister Dominique de Villepin said on Monday that
more than 3,000 hectares (7,400 acres) of brush and pinewood had
been destroyed in southern France in recent days and urged
people to take extra care during the hot, dry summer weather.
More than 600 firefighters battled the flames near the
ancient city of Nimes, a local government spokeswoman said.
"There was quite a strong wind pushing the fire forward. We
hope the winds will ease during the night," she said.

Reut16:04 07-27-04

[NJFFSA16]

DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) - Forest fires destroyed most of three
villages near the Syrian-Turkish border, officials said, forcing
3,000 people to evacuate as Syrian and Turkish firefighters
extinguished the blazes on Wednesday.
An elderly man trapped inside his burning home in the village of
Eissaweya was the only reported death. Twenty-two people, including
forest rangers and four firefighters, were treated for smoke
inhalation or minor burns, according to the official Syrian Arab
News Agency.
An official with a local police department said the fire
destroyed 400 of the 600 houses in Eissaweya, al-Faher and Um
al-Toyor. The villages' 3,000 inhabitants were evacuated, according
to the official, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of
anonymity.
Police said the fires broke out Tuesday, affecting a
15-square-mile area, and were extinguished by midday Wednesday. The
police official said, however, that a small blaze in the nearby
village of al-Safra was still burning.
More than 60 fire engines and many volunteers worked through the
night to bring the fires under control. Firefighting planes and
vehicles from Turkey helped to fight the fires, which affected nine
villages, SANA reported.
The agency quoted Environment Minister Hilal al-Atrash, who is
supervising firefighting operations, as blaming the fires on
drought and unseasonably warm weather.
The affected villages are along the Mediterranean near a border
crossing with Turkey. They are near the port city of Latakia, 220
miles north of Damascus, but Latakia itself was not threatened.

(Copyright 2004 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[NJFFSA16]

Australians Leap into Sea to Avoid Deadly Wildfire

"PA"


At least eight people were killed in a wildfire that raced through southern Australia today, forcing terrified residents to leap into the sea to avoid the flames, emergency officials said.

The blaze on South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula, about 250 miles west of Adelaide, was the worst of several wildfires reported around the state, where temperatures have topped 44 degrees Celsius (111 degrees Fahrenheit) in recent days.

Residents of at least one township were forced to evacuate their homes and seek refuge on a beach to avoid the flames, State Emergency Services spokesman Stuart Macleod said.

“Some people had moved into the sea to escape the fire. Our people picked them up and brought them back to shore,” Macleod said.

The peninsula fire was reported yesterday and contained by firefighters, but flared up again today before blazing out of control, police spokeswoman Kylie Walsh said.

At least eight people have been killed, but the number was expected to rise as the fire continued to blaze out of control, said police inspector Malcolm Schluter.

It was not immediately clear what started the blaze. Firefighters said today’s weather conditions made it impossible to contain.

“There is no firefighting force in the world that can stop the fire in the conditions we experienced today,” Country Fire Service spokesman Simon Vogel told the Ten television network.

Two other wildfires also forced the closure of several Adelaide roads today.

[NJFFSA16]

Sea rescue as people flee bushfires

11jan05

ABOUT six people had been rescued from the sea after fleeing bushfires raging on South Australia's Eyre Peninsula, the State Emergency Service said today.

Deputy chief officer Stuart Macleod said the SES launched a boat from Port Lincoln to rescue the group, who fled as the intense fires approached North Shields, on the lower part of the peninsula.
"We deployed a vessel out of Port Lincoln which went up to North Shields, which is where the worst of the fires has been on the coast thus far," he said.

"Some people had moved into the sea to escape the fire. Our people picked them up and brought them back to shore.

"There was only one load of people, so about half a dozen or so."

He said the vessel had since returned to Port Lincoln but it remained on standby in case it was needed again.

At least five people have died in the bushfires, police confirmed this afternoon.

Mr Macleod said the SES was working to support the efforts of the Country Fire Service, including setting up roadblocks and conducting resupply runs to fire crews.

"We're just basically helping the fire service get on with their job," he said.

[NJFFSA16]

Firefighters battle two blazes

11jan05

FIREFIGHTERS battled two grassfires in country Victoria this afternoon as temperatures reached 40C.

About 70 appliances from the Country Fire Authority were called to a 2000ha grass fire about 3km south of Carranballac in western Victoria.
The fire, which began about 3pm (AEDT), was travelling in a southerly direction but a wind change was expected by 10pm which could push it east, CFA spokesman John Tindall said.

No houses or buildings have been threatened but smoke and ash has affected the nearby towns of Lismore and Derrinallum.

The Hamilton Highway and railway line have been closed.

Mr Tindall said firefighting efforts were being hampered by rough terrain.

"This is difficult country where it's very, very rocky and it's difficult to get trucks in and out of there," he said.

"It's not one of the best places to have a fire and its caused us some concern to get into and deal with."

CFA and Department of Sustainability and Environment firefighters are also fighting a grass and scrub fire which has covered about 60ha, 11km north of Balmoral, in Victoria's far west.

About 20 tankers are in attendance.

[NJFFSA16]

Tasmanian firefighters on alert
Tasmanian firefighters are preparing themselves for hot and windy weather conditions forecast for this afternoon.

A fire weather warning in place for the state's south and King Island.

The district officer with the Tasmania Fire Service, Ken Burns, is discouraging anyone from burning off and lighting open fires.

"Any fire burning in the open has got the potential to spread rapidly and be difficult to control so we discourage people generally from doing any burning of any sort today," he said.

Firefighters worked hard to contain more than 30 vegetation fires overnight and will closely monitor them throughout the day.

[NJFFSA16]

SYDNEY, Australia (AP) - Firefighters struggled Wednesday to
contain Australia's most deadly wildfire in more than two decades
with nine people killed and another six missing, officials said.
The fire, which started Monday, has burned through about 145,000
hectares (358,295 acres) of grass and farmland on South Australia
state's Eyre Peninsula, about 400 kilometers (250 miles) west of
Adelaide.
Eight of the victims - including two children aged 4 and 2 -
burned to death in their cars as they tried to flee the blaze on
Tuesday and another woman was found dead in her home on Wednesday,
police spokeswoman Kylie Walsh said.
Six others are missing and feared dead in the wreckage left by
the raging fires.
"It will be some time, perhaps days, before the identity of any
of the deceased can be established," Walsh said.
The Eyre Peninsula blaze is the worst wildfire to hit Australia
since the so-called Ash Wednesday fires of 1983, in which 75 people
were killed in South Australia and neighboring Victoria state.
Fanned by strong winds and temperatures in excess of 44 degrees
Celsius (111 Fahrenheit), the fire raged out of control on Tuesday,
forcing many local residents to flee their homes and seek refuge on
nearby beaches or in the sea.
The inferno razed five houses, two cabins, three sheds, one
shop, seven vehicles, 15 caravans and four boats.
Peninsula resident Russell Puckridge said he had only three
minutes to vacate his home before it was enveloped by flames.
"I've been here nearly 15 years and this year we paid our house
off, but she's gone, gone," he told ABC radio.
About 250 firefighters continued to fight the blaze Wednesday
afternoon.
"Our big priority now is that the fire is not actually yet
contained," state emergency services minister Patrick Conlon said,
citing concerns that the hot weather was set to continue.
Temperatures were slightly cooler on Wednesday, but were
expected to rise again to about 36 degrees Celsius (97 Fahrenheit)
on Thursday, fire services spokesman Chris Smith said.
Prime Minister John Howard on Wednesday expressed sadness over
the deaths, saying they were "a terrible reminder of the
ever-present threat of bushfires and their devastating effect on
this country."
Meanwhile, a separate wildfire in Victoria burned through about
8,500 hectares (21,004 acres) of grass in public and private
properties, destroying a house, a car, a shed and about 2,000 head
of sheep.

(Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[NJFFSA16]

Worst Australia bushfires in 20 yrs under control
ADELAIDE, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Firefighters brought
Australia's deadliest bushfires in 20 years under control on
Wednesday after nine people died in the blazes.
Up to 15 more people were missing, emergency officials
said.
Large areas of southern Australia are on alert for more
outbreaks after fires raced in a line across the Eyre
peninsula, about 250 km (155 miles) west of the South Australia
state capital Adelaide.
The South Australian Country Fire Service said the Eyre
peninsula fires, which began on Monday, had been brought under
control earlier on Wednesday.
State police said the body of a woman had been found in a
home in the tiny coastal hamlet of North Shields.
Eight others, including two young children, were confirmed
dead on Tuesday. All eight died in their cars as they tried to
flee the blazes, fanned by high winds and scorching
temperatures.
South Australian Police Commissioner Mal Hyde declared the
fires a major emergency, meaning emergency aid and recovery
must be provided for 48 hours.
The fires burned out about 100,00 hectares (250,000 acres),
including grazing land. Property damage has been described as
significant and estimates of livestock losses have been put at
10,000.
Fire alerts remain this week for South Australia,
neighbouring Victoria and New South Wales, Australia's most
populous state.
Bushfires are a constant threat to tinder-dry bushland
during the sweltering Australian summer, although the Eyre
peninsula fires were the first major blazes of this season.
Fires described as Australia's worst environmental disaster
destroyed more than three million hectares (7.4 million acres)
across three states and territories, killing four people in the
capital Canberra, in the summer of 2002/03.
In 1983, the devastating "Ash Wednesday" fires in South
Australia and Victoria killed 76 people.



REUTERS

[NJFFSA16]

By MERAIAH FOLEY
Associated Press Writer
SYDNEY, Australia (AP) - Firefighters contained a wildfire that
killed nine people and left three others missing, the nation's
deadliest blaze in more than two decades, officials said Thursday.
The fire, which started Monday, has consumed about 358,300 acres
of grass and farmland on South Australia state's Eyre Peninsula,
about 250 miles west of Adelaide.
Country Fire Service spokeswoman Leanne Adams said 80 new
firefighters arrived on the peninsula Thursday to relieve earlier
crews. Their next task was to burn a 100-foot fire break around the
85-mile perimeter of the fire, she said.
"The fire is contained. There were no flare ups overnight,"
Adams said.
Eight of the victims - including two children aged 4 and 2 -
burned to death in their cars as they tried to flee the blaze
Tuesday and another woman was found dead in her home Wednesday,
police spokeswoman Kylie Walsh said.
Three others were missing and feared dead, she said. "It will
be some time, perhaps days, before the identity of any of the
deceased can be established."
Fanned by strong winds and temperatures reaching 111 degrees,
the fire raged out of control Tuesday. Local residents to fled to
beaches or sought refuge in the sea. The inferno razed houses,
shops, vehicles and boats.
Peninsula resident Russell Puckridge said he had only three
minutes to vacate his home before it was enveloped by flames.
"I've been here nearly 15 years and this year we paid our house
off, but she's gone, gone," he told ABC radio.
Prime Minister John Howard on Wednesday said the deaths were "a
terrible reminder of the ever-present threat of bushfires and their
devastating effect on this country."
A separate wildfire in Victoria burned through about 21,000
acres of public and private properties, destroying a house, a car,
a shed and about 2,000 head of sheep.
The Eyre Peninsula blaze is the worst wildfire to hit Australia
since the Ash Wednesday fires of 1983. That fire killed 75 people
in South Australia and neighboring Victoria state.

APTV 01-12-05 2200EST

[NJFFSA16]

Uruguay wildfire forces tourists to flee
MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay (Reuters) - A wildfire that has
been burning for two days has forced thousands of vacationers
out of Uruguay's Santa Teresa National Park and nearby tourist
attractions, officials said Wednesday.
The fire has partially destroyed the park, on the eastern
coast of Uruguay, and was threatening the popular fishing
village of Punta del Diablo, 190 miles east of
Montevideo.
"The fire has returned (to Punta del Diablo), it has
changed direction but it is being fought back," Jose Maria
Rivero, director of the National Emergency System, told
Reuters.
So far, 10,000 people have been forced to leave the area.
Uruguay's beaches and nearby woodlands are very popular
with Latin American tourists, particularly Argentines.
Another fire that was creeping toward the beach resort of
La Coronilla, further east, was stopped just miles from town.
La Coronilla is 25 miles from the border with Brazil.
Argentina has offered assistance in fighting the blaze and
Brazilian firefighters were already helping.
Four men have been arrested in connection with the blazes,
fire chief Hugo Romeo told a local newspaper Wednesday.
REUTERS

[NJFFSA16]

By JOSE P. MONEGRO
Associated Press Writer
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) - The Dominican Republic
may ask Puerto Rico to help fight a forest fire that's been raging
in the Caribbean nation's central mountain range for nearly two
weeks, officials said Monday.
Clouds at high elevation and smoke from the fire has hindered
firefighting efforts and made it impossible to estimate how much
land is burning, said Milton Tejada, a spokesman for the
environment secretary.
"We have more than 700 men working in the area, but conditions
are favorable for the fire," Tejada said. "If necessary, we would
ask Puerto Rico to use a plane and a helicopter" to dump retardant
on the blaze.
Dominican authorities were investigating the cause of the fire,
which began in the lower part of Duarte Mountain in the Jose del
Carmen Ariza National Park, said Danneris Santana, sub-secretary of
environment.
Santana said vegetation in the area was dry because of little
rain in the past few months.
The National Meteorology Center said Monday no rain was expected
over the next three days.
Set at 3,175 meters (10,416 feet) above sea level, the popular
hiking area around Duarte Mountain has been closed since last
weekend because of the blaze.
The central mountain range covers approximately 758 square
kilometers (293 square miles) and comprises a handful of cities
including Santiago, the country's second largest with 1 million
people.
Though the fire is over 30 kilometers (18 miles) away from
Santiago, authorities said smoke had reached the city. Authorities
said the blaze has yet to come close to any houses or structures.
(jm-pp/fg)

(Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[NJFFSA16]

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) - About 700 firefighters
and soldiers dug fire lines Tuesday as they battled a raging forest
fire in the Caribbean nation's touristy central mountain range.
Clouds and thick smoke prevented military helicopters from
dropping water or retardant on the blaze, said Col. Francisco
Fernandez, spokesman for the Dominican armed forces.
The Dominican Republic has asked Puerto Rico to lend a special
plane to drop retardant during fly overs, Fernandez said.
Poor visibility has made it impossible to estimate how much land
was burning or investigate the cause of the fire, authorities said.
A dry spell over the past few months has withered vegetation and
it was likely to continue through April, said Jose Maria Duquela,
director of the National Meteorology Office.

[NJFFSA16]

By PETER PRENGAMAN
Associated Press Writer
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) - Hundreds of
firefighters dug trenches around the perimeter of the highest peak
in the Dominican Republic on Tuesday, trying to contain a forest
fire that broke out nearly three weeks ago on its drought-stricken
slopes, an official said.
The fire has consumed at least 63 square kilometers (24 square
miles) of forest, but the devastation might turn out to be more
extensive once a thorough survey of the area can be done, said
Environment Secretary Max Puig, giving the government's first
damage estimates.
Clouds at the high elevation and smoke from the fire have
hindered firefighting efforts since the fire began March 11 in the
lower part of Duarte Mountain in the Jose del Carmen Ariza National
Park, some 75 miles (120 kilometers) northwest of the capital Santo
Domingo.
The popular hiking area around the 3,175-meter (10,416-foot)
Duarte Mountain has been closed since then. Puig said authorities
were still investigating what caused the fire.
About 700 firefighters and soldiers were close to containing the
blaze by digging trenches around its perimeter, while two
Venezuelan helicopters dropped retardant on hot spots. Authorities
expect the fire to burn itself out within a few days unless new
focal points pop up outside the trenches, Puig said.
The worst drought in five years has withered vegetation and made
forests in the Caribbean nation particularly flammable, said Miguel
Campusano, forecast director for the National Weather Office.
Campusano said rainfall between January and April was normally
low, but this year it had been almost nonexistent. Campusano said
in the central mountain range only 2.7 millimeters (0.1 inches) of
rain fell in February, far below the average 116 millimeters (4.6
inches) for that month.
Campusano attributed the drought to the El Nino weather pattern,
which he said was causing warmer-than-normal sea surface
temperatures that reduced storm conditions and thus overall
precipitation.
The drought has also affected other Caribbean countries.
Little rain has fallen in western Puerto Rico since November.
In nearly a month, some 250 acres (100 hectares) of forest have
been consumed in three spots in the State Forest of Maricao, in
west central Puerto Rico, said fire department chief German Ocasio.
Some small farmhouses have been burned, but no injuries or deaths
have been reported.
Although the fires have been contained, they will probably not
be completely extinguished until expected April rains.
For the past month, many bushfires have broken out in St.
Elizabeth parish, a farming region in southern Jamaica. Several
farms have been burned, but no injuries or deaths have been
reported.
(pp-mn-dk)
---
Associated Press Writer Howard Campbell contributed to this
report from Jamaica.

(Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[NJFFSA16]

MEXICO CITY (AP) - Authorities in Guadalajara declared a smog
alert Tuesday, closing schools after forest fires raging nearby
blanketed much of Mexico's second-largest city with a pall of thick
gray smog.
Hundreds of fire fighters and volunteers were battling more than
a dozen separate blazes in forests outside the city, 280 miles (450
kilometers) west of the nation's capital.
But the worst smoke came from two large fires, one sparked by a
campfire, Monday afternoon in the Bosque de la Primavera reserve.
The blazes destroyed hundreds of acres of woodlands, raising the
level of suspended particles in the air to unhealthy levels,
authorities said.
The education secretary for Jalisco state, which includes
Guadalajara, ordered all municipal schools closed and the city's
main universities also shut their doors to protect students,
faculty members and staff from unhealthy air.
Officials from the state health secretary issued a
recommendation that residents stay in doors and said they had taken
extra precautions to treat asthma patients who could be especially
affected.
Mexico has seen more fires so far in 2005 than in any of the
preceding four years, and still must suffer through five to six
more weeks of dry, hot weather before seasonal rains set in, said
Environment Secretary Alberto Cardenas.
Forest fires were also burning in Puebla and Oaxaca states and
in the southern state of Chiapas, where blazes devoured hundreds of
federally protected acres in the Lacandon jungle.
Cardenas said abundant rains in recent years had fed the growth
of forests, increasing the potential for fires.

(Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[NJFFSA16]

ZAPOPAN, Mexico (AP) - Efforts to control dwindling wildfires in
western Mexico claimed a life on Saturday as a helicopter crashed
outside Guadalajara, killing the pilot, authorities reported.
No other people were on board the privately owned helicopter
when it plunging into a river near Zapopan, about 290 miles (470
kilometers) west of Mexico City, said Julio Quinones, a spokesman
for the Zapopan police department.
The helicopter had been helping federal authorities monitor the
smoldering aftermath of several forest fires in the Bosque de la
Primavera reserve.
The fires had sent a pall of smoke over Guadalajara, Mexico's
second-largest city, where a health alert was issued and schools
were closed as a result of poor air quality. Schools reopened on
Thursday.
Skies were calm on Saturday, and the cause of the crash was not
immediately known, police said.
Mexico has seen more fires so far in 2005 than in any of the
preceding four years and still must suffer through several weeks of
dry, hot weather before seasonal rains arrive.

(Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[NJFFSA16]

MEXICO CITY (AP) - Forest fires raging in a rural corner of
Mexico's most-populous state Wednesday killed four adults and two
children who had volunteered to help combat the flames, federal
authorities said.
Environment Secretary Alberto Cardenas issued an urgent call for
soldiers to join 100 federal, state and local officials, as well as
dozens of volunteers and firefighters outside the city of
Tejupilco, in Mexico state, which borders Mexico City.
Authorities were also using a helicopter to battle the blaze,
which was burning about 80 miles (125 kilometers) southwest of the
nation's capital, according to a statement released by Cardenas'
office.
The fire began Tuesday morning and has continued to grow,
causing evacuations and seriously injuring one person in addition
to the volunteers whose lives it claimed, the statement said.
Those killed were residents who joined firefighters after the
blaze threatened the area, the statement said. Killed around 1 p.m.
were David Jaramillo, Francisco Benitez, Fernando Albiter, Esteban
Jaramillo, Pedro Barrueta and Carlos Barrueta Sanchez, though the
circumstances surrounding their deaths were not clear.
The name of the volunteer who was gravely injured could not be
confirmed, the statement said.
Forest fires have menaced much of Mexico recently, especially in
areas where rains have been slow to come during the early weeks of
the country's wet season.
Last week, a thick gray pall of smoke generated by more than a
dozen forest fires burning outside Guadalajara, Mexico's
second-largest city, forced officials to call a smog emergency and
close schools. Fires have also claimed thousands of acres of
woodlands in the central state of Puebla as well as Chiapas,
Mexico's southernmost state.

(Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

[NJFFSA16]

FEATURE-Park at world's southern tip recovers from Chile fire
By Katie Burford
TORRES DEL PAINE, Chile (Reuters) - It took a month
and 800 firefighters to put out an immense wildfire earlier
this year in remote southern Chile's Torres del Paine national
park, world renowned for its awe-inspiring granite spires and
glaciers.
Now, near the southern tip of the world where the growing
season is compressed into a few months, authorities have begun
the long process of helping nature heal from the park's worst
fire in decades, started when a Czech tourist's camp burner
blew over.
Tourism officials, meanwhile, are assuring nervous tour
operators from France to Japan that Chile's most famous park is
still a rugged backpackers' paradise. Tourism pumps an
estimated $75 million a year into Chile's extreme south.
"Something that man caused, man can also fix," said Marco
Cordero, regional director for Conaf, Chile's forest service.
Immediate concerns are that erosion could alter the park's
brilliant turquoise lakes, invasive plant species could gain a
foothold or endangered wildlife could be forced outside the
park's protective boundaries to forage for food.
As a token of goodwill, the Czech government contributed
about $185,500 toward the recovery, which is expected to cost
$7 million.
Preserving this pristine hinterland in the heart of
Patagonia, a loosely defined region that encompasses
southernmost Chile and Argentina, is about more than
aesthetics.
"Tourism for the Magellan region is one of the main sources
of revenue," said Miguel Angel, regional director for Chile's
Sernatur tourism department.
Torres del Paine is Chilean Patagonia's headline
attraction, but the Straits of Magellan, Tierra del Fuego, Cape
Horn and Antarctica are other popular destinations.
Most that journey to this far-flung, glacier-encrusted
region expect to encounter its legendary wind. It forces trees
to grow sideways and has merited a mention by every prominent
chronicler to pass through in the last 500 years.
The wind frustrated the efforts of firefighters gathered
from all over Chile and Argentina to put down the fast-moving
blaze, which seemed to send fingers out in all directions.
Authorities point out that only a fraction of the park
burned -- 45 square miles of 935 square miles
total -- and this was more than a mile
from the park's signature spires, which jut from plains in
a cluster like a prairie Atlantis.
Still the damage is startling. Travelers on the park's
easternmost road drop over a hill to find themselves suddenly
surrounded by a barren moonscape. In sections, charred ground
stretches for as far as the eye can see.
The fire, which began Feb. 17, hit at the peak of the
park's four-month tourist season, which starts in December, the
middle of the southern-hemisphere summer.
Tourism officials say they have not seen a unusual dip in
visitors, which number about 100,000 a year from 80 different
countries. As a precaution, they put the word out at travel
fairs around the globe that Torres del Paine is still very much
worth the trip.

ABOUNDS WITH WILDLIFE
Native people believed the peaks, which soar as high as
10,000 feet, were warriors turned to stone by an evil
spirit. Starting in the early 1900s the surrounding land,
cursed by many a settler as worthless, was used for ranching,
until 1959 when it was declared a national park. Tourism
started to hit its stride in the '90s.
Outside Patagonia's protected areas large sheep farms still
operate and overgrazing of the pampa is a major concern of
environmental groups. The wildfire that devastated Torres del
Paine also burned 15 square miles of adjacent
private ranchland.
The park abounds with wildlife -- ostrich-like nandu,
Andean condors, llama-like guanaco, Austral parakeets,
flamingos, puma and the endangered huemul, a member of the deer
family. The only known fatalities of the fire were a handful of
guanaco.
The first stage of the 12-year fire recovery plan involves
filling in trenches, dug as a barriers to contain the fire;
building dikes to prevent erosion; and collecting seeds to use
for reseeding next season. The government is compensating
ranchers whose land is being grazed by displaced wildlife.

SYMBOLIC PARK
Although Czech tourist Jiri Smitak has said he deeply
regrets the fire, many Chileans were incensed that he only
received a $200 fine. Lawmakers called for tougher penalties
and the State Defense Council filed a suit against Smitak
seeking damages.
National pride in the park runs deep but since it is not
connected to the rest of Chile by road, the park is expensive
to reach and only about a third of Torres del Paine visitors
are Chilean. Most come from the United States or European
countries. Visitors fly in to an airport about a four-hour
drive south of the park.
Cordero said various organizations from around the globe
have offered to help with funds or expertise.
"For the whole world, Torres del Paine park is something of
an emblem," he said.
REUTERS

Reut08:00 05-17-05

[NJFFSA16]

CHISASIBI, Que. (CP) - Residents of this northern Cree community
were told they could return home Sunday night after firefighters
brought a nearby forest fire under control.
"The fire is practically extinguished," said Helene Philippe,
a spokeswoman for the federal department of Indian and Northern
Affairs. "There are only two little hot spots remaining on which
local firefighters are working. It is not a threat to the
community."
The fire started at about 11 a.m. Saturday. It took about 130
firefighters and two water bombers to bring the fire under control,
civil protection officials said.
The fire had come to within a kilometre of the town of 3,500
earlier on Sunday, prompting authorities to order 600 residents to
leave as a precaution.
Eighty people were flown to Val D'or,about 630 kilometres south
of the community and 150 were taken to Radisson, 120 kilometres
east of the town, said Claude Gagne, Radisson's emergency services
co-ordinator. The remaining 370 went to other aboriginal
communities, he said.
The fire caused no injuries or material damage. Rather,
evacuations were made as a precaution.
"The people who were evacuated from Chisasibi are people who
can't be (exposed) to smoke. We're talking about people with
pulmonary problems or health problems," he said.
Those people are now returning home after Chief Abraham Rupert
lifted the local state of emergency, Philippe said.
"It's good news. It seems everything is back in order," she
said.
Civil protection officials say fires are common in the James Bay
area and spread easily due to dry spots, caribou moss and conifer
leaves.
The cause of the fire was being investigated.
(CP-Montreal Gazette)


(Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)