SANTIAGO: According to the National Forest Corporation (Conaf), a fire in Chile's Tierra del Fuego province burned 1,235 hectares of forest in the commune of Timaukel.
According to reports, Conaf's interim regional director John Revello said the fire started on January 25 on territory owned by a forestry company, and 600 hectares had been destroyed as of Monday. The fire in the Magallanes region has been difficult to contain due to the rough terrain, vegetation, buildup of fallen trees and lumber, and meteorological conditions, according to Revello.
The afflicted area is home to a lenga forest, a type of beech tree native to Tierra del Fuego, according to Agriculture Minister Maria Emilia Undurraga.
"There are many old dead lenga trees due to geographical factors and the forest itself," Undurraga explained, "so it's like having mounds of piled firewood, which makes it tough to fight and contain the fire." Since Wednesday, five aeroplanes with a load capacity of 15,000 litres of water have been fighting the fire, according to Conaf.
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