Pope Francis yesterday called for a global commitment to put out the fires in the Amazon, saying the area was essential for the health of the planet.
“We are all worried about the vast fires that have developed in the Amazon. Let us pray so that with the commitment of all, they can be put out soon. That lung of forests is vital for our planet,” he told thousands of people in Saint Peter’s Square for his weekly address.
His appeal came just hours after official data on Saturday showed that hundreds of new fires were raging in the Amazon rainforest and Brazilian troops began deploying to fight the fires.
Photo: AP
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro on Saturday also tried to temper global concern, saying that previously deforested areas had burned and that intact rainforest was spared.
About 44,000 troops will be available for “unprecedented” operations to put out the fires, and forces are heading to six states — Roraima, Rondonia, Tocantins, Para, Acre and Mato Grosso — that asked for federal help, Brazilian Minister of Defense Fernando Azevedo said.
The military’s first mission will be carried out by 700 troops around Porto Velho, capital of Rondonia, Azevedo said.
Photo: AFP
The military will use two C-130 Hercules aircraft capable of dumping up to 12,000 liters of water on fires, he said.
The Brazilian military operations came after widespread criticism of Bolsonaro’s handling of the crisis.
Despite international concern, Bolsonaro told reporters on Saturday that the situation was returning to normal.
The president said he was “speaking to everyone” about the problem, including US President Donald Trump, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and several Latin American leaders.
Multiple fires billowing huge plumes of smoke into the air were seen across a vast area of the northwestern state of Rondonia on Friday when Agence France-Presse journalists flew over the area.
Several residents in the statecapital, Porto Velho, said on Saturday that what appeared to be light clouds hanging over the city of half a million people, was actually smoke from the blazes that had scorched swaths of land and left tree trunks smoldering on the ground.
Official figures show 78,383 forest fires have been recorded in Brazil this year, the highest number of any year since 2013.
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