Jan. 20 (UPI) -- Large-scale wildfires have torn through southern Chile since Friday, killing at least 20 people, destroying nearly 600 homes and impacting more than 7,000 residents, Chile's National Disaster Prevention and Response Service said.
Interior Minister Alvaro Elizalde said Tuesday that 28 wildfires remain actively burning nationwide. Since the emergency began, authorities have recorded 142 fires that have burned more than 93,000 acres, local radio outlet Radio Biobio reported.
Fueled by high temperatures, strong winds and extremely dry conditions, the fires have spread across four southern regions, forcing the evacuation of thousands of residents and prompting a large-scale national emergency response.
Fire crews from the National Forestry Corporation, known as Conaf, along with firefighters, the armed forces and emergency teams, are working to contain the flames and protect rural and urban communities.
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