Wildfires rage out of control in Patagonia as thousands of tourists evacuated

Wildfires have raged through Patagonia, forcing the evacuation of at least 3,000 tourists. Several forest areas near the Andes mountains in Chubut province have been blazing since Monday (5 January), with video footage showing billows of smoke and flames rising from the trees. More than 2,000 hectares of vegetation across various points in the Argentine Patagonia have been affected by the blazes. “Comarca Andina", a popular tourist destination, has been hit by the flames. At least one of the fires was the result of arson, officials said. It comes a year after the country was hit by its worst wildfires in three decades, which saw tens of thousands of hectares razed to the ground and left one person dead.