Parts of central Chile have recently experienced unusually high temperatures and dry weather, sparking dozens of forest fires that have killed more than 100 people. Over the weekend, wildfires burned through several hillside neighborhoods in the city of Viña del Mar, destroying hundreds of homes. A state of emergency was declared by Chilean President Gabriel Boric, who also declared two days of national mourning, as firefighters work to contain the blazes and survivors return to their homes to recover what they can.
Deadly Wildfires Rage Through Central Chile
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![An aerial view of a hillside residential neighborhood with many burning houses]()
Read moreAn aerial view of fire burning through a neighborhood in the hills of the city of Viña del Mar in the Las Pataguas sector, Chile, taken on February 3, 2024 #
Javier Torres / AFP / Getty -
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![People walk and play on a beach as the sky above them fills with a massive black cloud of wildfire smoke in the sky above them.]()
Read moreVacationers play paddleball on a beach backdropped by a darkening sky caused by smoke from nearby forest fires, in Viña del Mar, Chile, on February 2, 2024. #
Martin Thomas / Aton Chile / AP -
![People push a car away from a burning forest fire.]()
Read moreResidents push a car away from a burning forest fire engulfing homes in Villa Alemana, Valparaiso, Chile, on February 2, 2024. #
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![Wildfire smoke has turned the sky above a well-lit city nearly black.]()
Read moreSmoke from wildfires darkens the sky above Viña del Mar, Chile, on February 2, 2024. #
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![Two houses burn on a hillside at night.]()
Read moreHouses burn during a fire in Viña del Mar on February 3, 2024. #
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![Several firefighter work in a street, backlit by a forest fire.]()
Read moreFirefighters try to put out a fire in Viña del Mar on February 2, 2024. #
Javier Torres / AFP / Getty -
![Several vehicles and buildings burn.]()
Read moreVehicles and homes burn in Viña del Mar on February 2, 2024. #
Javier Torres / AFP / Getty -
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![Smoke hangs above a burned-out hillside neighborhood.]()
Read moreAn aerial view of the aftermath of a fire in the hills of Viña del Mar, seen on February 3, 2024 #
Javier Torres / AFP / Getty -
![A cluster of burned-out houses]()
Read moreBurned houses are pictured amid the spread of wildfires in Viña del Mar on February 3, 2024. #
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![Two people embrace as others work to clear debris from a burned house.]()
Read moreA couple hug after a wildfire in Villa Independencia, Valparaiso region, on February 4, 2024. #
Javier Torres / AFP / Getty -
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![A cat rescued from a wildfire receives treatment for burns.]()
Read moreA cat rescued from a wildfire receives treatment for burns at a wildlife-rehabilitation center at the University of the Americas in Viña del Mar on February 4, 2024. #
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![A person tosses a bucketful of water at a burning building.]()
Read moreA man tries to extinguish a fire in Viña del Mar on February 3, 2024. #
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![An aerial view of fires burning many houses in a hillside neighborhood]()
Read moreFire consumes a neighborhood in the city of Viña del Mar on February 3, 2024. #
Javier Torres / AFP / Getty -
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![Several firefighters work to herd sheep under smoky skies.]()
Read moreA firefighter rescues animals near a forest fire in the hills in Quilpué, Valparaiso region, on February 3, 2024. #
Javier Torres / AFP / Getty -
![Several law-enforcement officers walk past a row of burned cars.]()
Read moreChilean Carabineros walk past burned vehicles after a forest fire in Quilpué, Viña del Mar, on February 4, 2024. #
Rodrigo Arangua / AFP / Getty -
![A person sits on a sidewalk near burned houses, crying.]()
Read moreA woman reacts after losing a friend who died after a forest fire reached the Villa Independencia neighborhood on February 3, 2024. #
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![An aerial view of many fire-destroyed houses]()
Read moreAn aerial view of destroyed houses in Viña del Mar on February 4, 2024 #
Claudio Santana / Getty -
![A burned area, including destroyed buildings and damaged trees]()
Read moreA view of the Botanical Garden after a forest fire in Viña del Mar, seen on February 4, 2024 #
Javier Torres / AFP / Getty -
![Two people walk across a road; one carries an injured dog wrapped in blue fabric.]()
Read moreA man carries a dog after it received treatment for burns at the University of the Americas in Viña del Mar on February 4, 2024. #
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![A woman sits amid the debris of a burned house, beside a shovel and a wheelbarrow.]()
Read moreA woman picks through the rubble of her burned house in Viña del Mar on February 4, 2024. #
Sofia Yanjari / Reuters
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