LA PAZ (Reuters) – Bolivia has declared a national emergency due to raging forest fires, the country’s defense ministry said on Saturday.
At a press conference, Defense Minister Edmundo Novillo said the national emergency would allow the country to quickly coordinate international support.
“This will allow us to receive more flexible and effective support from friendly countries and international cooperation,” Novillo said.
Bolivia has experienced its worst wildfires since 2010, with at least 3 million hectares (7.5 million acres) burned this year, according to Brazil’s space agency, which monitors the fires.
South America is in the throes of a peak fire season that spans August and September after an unusually early fire season that ravaged the country after a drought in July.
Bolivia’s firefighting forces have weakened and the government has called for international aid. Local volunteers tried to protect land they used to grow crops and feed livestock near the Chikitano forest north of Concepcion, which stretches toward Brazil and Paraguay, but some were forced to evacuate.
Brazil also saw massive urban fires, and the Amazon (NASDAQ: ) rainforest is off to its worst start in two decades after a record drought.
