Chilean police have arrested a former firefighter who they believe contributed to exacerbating a deadly forest fire in February.
Elías Antonio Salazar, 39, is being accused of having started one or more of the four fires that erupted in the Valparaíso region, near the coastal city of Viña del Mar on Feb. 2. The blazes ultimately led to the deaths of 137 people.
#Chile is currently facing deadliest #forest #fire on the record.
— Parveen Kaswan, IFS (@ParveenKaswan) February 5, 2024
At least 112 people have been killed by forest fires in Chile's Valparaíso region.
Many of those affected were visiting the coastal region during the summer holidays.
Place is seeing intense summer heat wave,… pic.twitter.com/yfv6oC0gEt
At the time the fires were roaring, the suspect was volunteering with Chile's National Service for Disaster Prevention.
A police statement regarding the arrest indicates that the suspect may have set the fires in order to stop them himself. Senior detective Guillermo Gálvez said 'he likes to be a hero, participating and helping in emergencies.'
According to local media, the suspect had been previously hailed a "hero" for containing a separate, previous fire in his area. In fact, many local media sources praised him for his swift response to the February fires in the Valparaíso region, commending him for responding to the crisis without official orders.
Salazar is now the third suspect to be arrested in connection with the February blazes. Two other suspects, a 22-year-old firefighter and a park ranger, have been in custody since May. One of the previously apprehended suspects admitted to having caused the fire alongside the other previously apprehended suspect, stating that they hoped to benefit financially from working overtime in order to stop the fires. He described throwing cigarettes lit with matches onto dry ground in the Lago Peñuelas national park from his car.
Law enforcement suspects all 3 suspects of having worked together in order to cause the fire.
"We are very dismayed by the situation." said local fire commander Vicente Maggiolo. "We have been saving lives for more than 170 years."
The strong winds and dried out vegetation at the park meant the fire grew rapidly. Thousands of homes were destroyed as the blaze spread to the hills surrounding Viña del Mar and the towns of Quilpué and Villa Alemana.
The area was densely populated with people trying to escape Chile's extreme temperatures. The fires caused a total of 137 fatalities, destroyed 2,000 homes and inflicted financial losses upon 16,000 people.
The incident is considered to be one of the worst tragedies in Chile's recent history, even earning the title of the nation's deadliest crisis since the 2010 earthquake that killed over 500.
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