Chile’s Raging Wildfires

Conguillfo, Chile

Wildfires are raging out of control in some of Chile’s oldest protected forests. Hundreds of acres of old growth have been destroyed in Conguillfo National Park, which is known for its centuries-old “monkey puzzle” trees. This is a “massive environmental catastrophe,” said Luis Mariano Rendonl of environmental group Accion Ecologica. Chile is in its eighth year of severe drought, and reservoirs that could have been used for firefighting have dried up. President Michelle Bachelet said the country would start investing in more desalination plants to ensure that Chileans will have drinking water in the Wildfire rips through a national park, dry years to come.