{"id":632195,"date":"2024-08-26T10:13:36","date_gmt":"2024-08-26T07:13:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/brazil-waging-war-on-wildfires-in-crowded-sao-paulo-state\/"},"modified":"2024-08-26T10:13:36","modified_gmt":"2024-08-26T07:13:36","slug":"brazil-waging-war-on-wildfires-in-crowded-sao-paulo-state","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/brazil-waging-war-on-wildfires-in-crowded-sao-paulo-state\/","title":{"rendered":"#Brazil waging ‘war’ on wildfires in crowded Sao Paulo state"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n With dense smoke drifting across a wide swath of Brazil, several flights have been canceled and travel<\/a> on some roads has been halted.
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Brazil was deploying military aircraft as part of a “war” against wildfires ravaging the southeastern state of Sao Paulo, with authorities warning on Sunday that arsonists were setting blazes.<\/p>\n

Following a crisis meeting of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s cabinet, Environment Minister Marina Silva announced a “war against the fire” and said federal police were investigating the “atypical situation” that has caused extensive damage.<\/p>\n

“So far we have not detected any fire caused by lightning, which means there are people starting fires,” Lula said in a video that he posted on X after meeting with Silva.<\/p>\n

Tarcisio de Freitas, the governor of Sao Paulo, by far the country’s most populous state with some 44 million residents, decreed a state of emergency in 45 municipalities and said two people suspected of starting fires had been arrested.<\/p>\n

The president promised federal assistance to the states in fighting the blazes, saying there were already 3,000 firefighters working nationwide.<\/p>\n

With dense smoke drifting across a wide swath of Brazil — even reaching capital city Brasilia 720 kilometers (450 miles) to the north — several flights have been canceled and travel on some roads has been halted.<\/p>\n

“I stuck my nose out last night around 7:00 pm and I had a lot of trouble breathing,” 66-year-old retiree Carlos Rodrigues told AFP. “I’ve lived here 32 years and I’ve never seen anything like it.”<\/p>\n

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\n Videos posted on social media<\/a> showed the city plunged into near-darkness by a dense layer of smoke.
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Two factory workers died Friday in Urupes, in the northern part of the state, while fighting a fire, officials said.<\/p>\n

The military aircraft being deployed include a KC-390 Embraer, a converted troop transport craft that can drop up to 12,000 liters (3,170 gallons) of water on fire zones.<\/p>\n

The Embraer was sent to one of the communities most threatened, Ribeirao Preto, a city of 700,000 inhabitants about 300 kilometers from Sao Paulo.<\/p>\n

But Silva said the plane “was unable to operate because of the amount of smoke,” adding: “That gives you an idea of the problem.”<\/p>\n

Videos posted on social media showed the city plunged into near-darkness by a dense layer of smoke. Some residents have had to evacuate.<\/p>\n

“It’s apocalyptic,” a person is heard saying in one video.<\/p>\n

Authorities were hoping rains that fell Sunday would help alleviate the crisis.<\/p>\n

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\n The dense smoke drifted across Brazil, reaching as far as capital city Brasilia about 720 kilometers away.
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Around the region, farm fields have burned and scores of cattle have died.<\/p>\n

Governor de Freitas said 10 million reais (around $1.8 million) were being allocated to help farmers who lose crops or livestock.<\/p>\n

Amid prolonged drought, Sao Paulo state is experiencing its worst month for fires in decades, with 3,480 separate blazes identified, according to INPE, the National Institute for Space Research.<\/p>\n

The government directly linked the situation to climate change.<\/p>\n

“Even the deniers can no longer deny the climate crisis,” Lula said on X.<\/p>\n

“We have to fight climate change with a lot of intelligence, and with financing from the richest countries that have already destroyed their forests.”<\/p>\n

\n \u00a9 2024 AFP\n <\/p>\n

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Citation<\/strong>:
\n Brazil waging ‘war’ on wildfires in crowded Sao Paulo state (2024, August 26)
\n retrieved 26 August 2024
\n from https:\/\/phys.org\/news<\/a>\/2024-08-brazil-waging-war-wildfires-crowded.html<\/p>\n

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