Major Wildfires and Droughts in Chile

About 50 major wildfires burned in central and southern Chile, fueled by high winds, warm temperatures, and extremely dry conditions. Shifting winds were blamed for the deaths of seven firefighters battling the blazes. Thousands of people were forced to evacuate as hundreds of homes were destroyed and millions of dollars in damages were incurred. Much of the Torres del Paine National Park was charred. The park attracts around 150,000 tourists each year. Many of the fires were believed to be intentionally set.

A major wildfire broke out near Reno, Nevada on January 19^th. The fire was fanned by winds as high as 82 mph (132 km/hr). Twenty-nine homes were destroyed and thousands of residents were evacuated as more than six square miles (1,550 hectares) rapidly burned. Flames as tall as 40 feet (12 meters) scorched dry sagebrush, grass, and pines. The area had just broken a winter record of 56 straight days without precipitation before light snow fell just days before the fire. The previous winter dry-spell record was 54 days, during the winter of 1960/61. Several daily high temperature records were also tied or broken around Reno and South Lake Tahoe during the first half of January, according to the National Weather Service. The fire was contained on the 21^st as two inches of rain fell over the affected area.

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