Approximate reading time: 3 minutes
The painful tragedy of Greater Valparaíso due to the spread of forest fires, with the loss of no less than 131 human lives – there are still people missing – and the destruction of some 15 thousand homes, leaves clear the need to take a backseat instances that seemed to be a priority, to immediately devote themselves completely to the care of the affected families and begin reconstruction work as soon as possible in a relevant region of the national territory.
It is the greatest misfortune of recent years and focusing on leaving it behind appears imperative for Chilean society: the tongues of fire reached transit camps, family health centers that served hundreds of men and women, the traditional Botanical Garden, schools , shops, factories and industries, headquarters of neighborhood units and sports clubs, public transport buses and private vehicles, different public spaces, etc., all of which will cost a lot to recover and restore.
So much anguish of those affected – thousands and thousands – many of them poor and with precarious income, makes the presence of the protective State essential to come to the timely aid of those who suffered not only a harsh emotional impact but also saw the little they had reduced to ashes. . Some of them are now remembering their loved ones who are no longer here, sleeping in tents, others in shelters and eating in communal pots.
Communes in the provinces of Valparaíso and Marga Marga lived hours and days of panic when uncontrolled Nature attacked with fury against simple and modest people who lived in popular sectors and whose homes were the result of years of work. There were residents who were not able to rescue anything and were left with what they had.
Upper parts of Viña del Mar, Quilpué, Villa Alemana and to a lesser extent Limache were hell starting in the afternoon hours of Friday, February 2. At the end of a first tour of burning neighborhoods and towns, the Viñamarina mayor was categorical: “It is the worst national catastrophe”…
Indeed, this recent massive misfortune is among those that have hit the people most mercilessly. It is only surpassed in terms of the number of personal victims and amount and destruction of material property due to the earthquake that shook the country in the early hours of February 27, 2010.
Everything occurred this time in a hot summer season about which meteorologists had warned due to the risks posed by high temperatures accompanied by strong gusts of wind. But the alarm systems, nor the prevention and security measures, nor the extensive deployment of Conaf and Firefighters, nor the twenty helicopters that worked there, were sufficient. The devastation was total and caused international shock.
The President of the Republic has visited the affected sectors, spoken with the people and announced multiple palliative measures, including the activation of the National Reconstruction Fund, signed the decree that declares a catastrophe zone that allocates resources for the work that awaits ahead and determined the beginning of the payment of a recovery bonus of up to one and a half million pesos. At the same time, he established two days of national mourning to honor the memory of the deceased.
It remains to be known how the available resources and speed will be used when carrying out the necessary tasks. Then will come the reconstruction works in which many battered families have their hope, and in a place that avoids new similar misfortunes. You cannot insist on ravines, hillsides or other unsafe places.
Clearly, one must dedicate oneself with unwavering will and determination to the central objective, which is to put countless family groups touched by misfortune back on their feet. This is the most important thing at the moment, although other needs that appeared to be priorities have to be postponed, because the poor did not deserve such a brutal blow: they deserve at least emergency housing very soon, and then a permanent home.
The tragedy has coincided with the presidential call to Cosena, in which the Armed Forces participate. Now that the panorama has changed, the country hopes that the soldiers seen in the streets will constitute an effective contribution to what must be done Today: I work with appropriate machinery to remove debris, clear streets, general cleaning and provide support to the victims.
There is no space these days for other matters that were in the foreground, such as the short Isapres law that has just received a lifeline in the Senate, nor about the grace pensions for the protesters of the social outbreak who suffered serious violations of their rights. human rights. The legislative power should only add laws in favor of those who lost everything.
The task is not easy nor can it be carried out in a shorter time. The material losses due to this terrible disaster in the Valparaíso Region are estimated at more than one billion dollars, which will seriously alter the national budget.
Chile frequently experiences successive and dramatic emergencies or often goes from one crisis to another, from which it seems not to have learned much. This emergency and the current crisis must be overcome promptly, with political will and the solidarity of all, not beyond the next few months, that is, within this year.
Hugo Alcayaga Brisso
Valparaiso