Overview
- More than 50,000 people were evacuated to schools and other shelters as authorities tracked about 30 active fires in Biobío and Ñuble.
- Burned area estimates climbed from roughly 8,000 hectares early Sunday to over 20,000 by nightfall, with preliminary reports of more than a thousand homes destroyed.
- A large fire near Concepción razed the communities of Punta de Parra, Lirquén and Penco, where searches for additional victims are ongoing.
- Curfews are in place and the army has been deployed to maintain public order, deter looting, and enforce bans on activities like transporting fuel in containers and lighting campfires.
- Investigations indicate most ignitions resulted from human actions, while temperatures above 30°C, winds over 60 km/h and very low humidity fueled extreme fire behavior.