Overview
- Roughly 3,500 hectares have burned in the Puerto Patriada–Epuyén–El Hoyo area, forcing the evacuation of more than 3,000 people and destroying at least ten homes, with intermittent closures on National Route 40.
- Preliminary forensic work detected fuel vapors at the suspected ignition point, and prosecutors say the main hypothesis is deliberate ignition, with full laboratory analyses still pending.
- Authorities report the fire remains active and not under control, with officials noting intensified overnight behavior that broke the earlier day–night cycle of fire activity.
- More than 500 responders are deployed, including newly arrived teams from Córdoba, national brigades and aerial assets such as a Boeing 737 Fireliner, helicopters and multiple water bombers with support from other provinces and Chile.
- The governor cited the province’s worst drought since 1965 and announced a 50 million‑peso reward for information, as the National Meteorological Service maintains an orange alert for heat and stronger winds.