The first flames were lit at 12:05 on Friday, February 2, in the Lago Peñuelas nature reserve. The heat, with a predicted maximum of 27ºC for the Valparaíso region and the strong wind that that day blew from south to north, spread the fire in record time.

At 6:00 p.m. on Friday the flames were already inside the city of Viña del Mar, in part of the commune of Quilpué and in Limache. The first death count was 19 people, but the Government warned that the number would increase.