The fire in
Los Alerces National Park
continues to devastate one of the greatest natural beauties of Argentina.
And the authorities point out a key piece of information to confirm that
these flames were started intentionally
: the time they started.
The governor of Chubut, Ignacio Torres, appeared in court to denounce Cruz Cárdenas, a former brigade member who claims to be Mapuche, as responsible for the flames that hit the Cordillera.
And now, although he did not point out Cárdenas, the park's mayor
also emphasized that the fire was intentional
.
“This was lit on purpose,” said Danilo Hernández Otaño, and upped the ante: “I confirm that it was an intentional fire
without the need for further expert reports
.”
The mayor of Los Alerces gave details to support his statement.
He explained that the fire began on Thursday, January 25, around 10:30 p.m. with
two simultaneous outbreaks
, which “clearly indicates that it was something premeditated, making quick initial control difficult.”
The time of the start of the fire is
a determining factor
for Hernández Otaño: “It was lit at dusk, knowing that firefighting, due to
safety protocols
, must be carried out during the day.”
The forest fire has affected the Los Alerces National Park since January 25.
Photo EFE/ Franco Citroni
“They did it this way so that
it would burn throughout the night
and when the tasks began there would already be a much larger area with fire,” he analyzed in statements collected by El Cordillerano.
The official pointed out that
the aerial means do not operate at night either
, and that this entire combo caused the two sources to join together, “generating a front that is very difficult to control.”
The fire
has already consumed some 2,474 hectares
and is still active on all fronts, with a complex fight due to the irregular topography of the terrain and the changing weather conditions.
About 330 people are working
in the operation
, which involves three helicopters, two hydrant planes and one observation plane from the National Fire Management Service.
An amphibious plane would also be added this Thursday.
Lof Paillako, in the spotlight
Torres targeted Cárdenas and the Pailako group that he is a member of, and linked the fire to the takeover of El Maitenal, which the former National Parks employee has led within the park since 2020. On Wednesday, the Paillako group responded to the governor's accusations:
“ “The Mapuche-Tehuelche people do not burn the forests
. ”
Cruz Cárdenas, targeted by the fires in Los Alerces National Park.
When the mayor was asked if he believed that the lof could be responsible for starting the fire, he responded that “
there is no demonstrable and identifiable causal link
, beyond the opinions one may have.”
And he recalled: "A few years ago there were
expressions of threat
on social networks from the RAM (Mapuche Ancestral Resistance) that were replicated by the Facebook account identified as Paillako Lof, which is
the supposed Mapuche community that entered by force and prepo
within the Los Alerces National Park.”
He also highlighted that the community “is involved in a
criminal case
brought to oral trial” for the usurpation it maintains in the park.
Although regarding the fire he clarified that all responsibilities are for now “matter of judicial investigation.”
ACE