Residents evacuated from their homes; Bolivia calls for international help to battle wildfires

Record ID: 1428574

  • Title: Residents evacuated from their homes; Bolivia calls for international help to battle wildfires
  • Date: 25th August 2019
  • Summary: TAPERAS, SANTA CRUZ, BOLIVIA (AUGUST 23, 2019) (REUTERS) MAN TRYING TO PUT OUT FIRE
  • Embargoed: 8th September 2019 15:25
  • Keywords: wildfires evacuation Santa Cruz Bolivia Taperas San Lorenzo
  • Location: SAN LORENZO & TAPERAS, SANTA CRUZ, BOLIVIA
  • City: SAN LORENZO & TAPERAS, SANTA CRUZ, BOLIVIA
  • Country: Bolivia
  • Topics: Disaster/Accidents,Fires,Editors' Choice
  • Reuters ID: LVA003ATPUTZB
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Residents were seen boarding buses as they were evacuated from the San Lorenzo Community in Bolivia on Saturday (August 24) night, an area where wildfires have destroyed hectares of forest.
    Women and children boarded the buses at night. Nevertheless some elderly men refused to leave.
    Bolivia is battling fires with the support of more than 2,000 people and a small aircraft. The government also hired a SuperTanker that began operating on Saturday.
    At least one million hectares of forest and grassland were affected by fires in the lowlands of eastern Bolivia, up to the previous figure of 744,711 hectares on Thursday (August 22).
    As fires raged in Bolivia, more wildfires continued to burn in Brazil.
    Six states in the Amazon region of Brazil requested military aid on Saturday to fight fires that are consuming the rainforest and have motivated the international clamour due to the central role that the Amazon plays in the fight against global warming.
    President Evo Morales said on Sunday (August 25) that Bolivia is open to receiving international aid to combat the forest fires that continue in the east of the country and announced the suspension of the election campaign for re-election, less than two months after the general elections.
    (Production: Santiago Limachi, Monica Machicao)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2019. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
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