09/08/2024 – 22:08
Fires in vegetation areas have spread throughout all regions of Goiás. Since the beginning of September, the state has already registered 1,468 fire outbreaks, according to the Burning Program of the National Institute for Space Research (INPE).
The fire is affecting part of Chapada dos Veadeiros, including the Chapada dos Veadeiros National Park and the Pouso Alto Environmental Protection Area. According to the Goiás Fire Department, on Friday the 6th alone, 44 fires were recorded in the area.
The fire in Chapada dos Veadeiros National Park, which started on Thursday, the 5th, has devastated an estimated 10,000 hectares. In a statement released on Saturday, the 7th, the park’s management stated that they still do not know what or who caused the fire.
Private preservation areas, such as the Campo Úmido Voshysias Private Natural Heritage Reserve (RPPN) and the Murundu RPPN were also affected.
Firefighters reported that the fire is being fought and is now under control, but teams continue to monitor the region.
In the region of Paralelo 14, near the GO-118 highway, firefighters fought a first fire, which was extinguished using blowers. The second fire was an underground fire, which arises spontaneously due to underground burning.
In these areas, the soil was soaked and trenches were created around the fires to prevent the heat from spreading through the ground. Eight soldiers participated in the incident.
According to the head of the Chapada dos Veadeiros National Park, staff from the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBio) and PrevFogo, from the Brazilian Institute of the Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (IBAMA), have also been working to combat the flames. When contacted, the federal agencies had not responded by the time this report was published.
Volunteer brigades are also participating in the fight. On social media, Ivan Anjo Diniz, coordinator of the Rede Contra Fogo, a brigade that operates in the region, reported that the fire reached the landfill in Alto Paraíso de Goiás, a municipality located in Chapada.
“What happens in Alto Paraíso is a disgrace. Every year, there is a fire at the landfill at the height of the drought, and no one watches over it, no one takes care of this place,” he said.
In a bulletin released on Friday, the 6th, the city hall of Alto Paraíso de Goiás stated that the flames were controlled and that the fight was being carried out to prevent the fire from spreading through the mountains of materials.
According to the municipal administration, authorities are taking legal measures to identify and punish those responsible.
Three suspects were arrested in Portelândia
In the southwest of the state, in Portelândia, a large fire took over the banks of BR-364 this Saturday, 7th. According to the Fire Department, the fire started in an area of corn straw near the Tabocão station around 1 pm.
The smoke made visibility on the highway difficult and caused a driver to lose control of the steering wheel and leave the road, falling into a well.
A passenger was hit by the flames while trying to get out of the car and suffered serious burns. She was taken to the UPA in Mineiros (GO) for medical attention. Two other men who were in the vehicle suffered less serious burns.
Three suspects of causing the fires were arrested. One of them confessed to being the author of the fire that hit the urban area of Caldas Novas.
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