Major forest fire blankets Quito in smoke, emergency crews battle flames

(CNN Spanish) –– The Quito Fire Department, Ecuador, confirmed that a forest fire was reported in the Guapulo sector, north of the center of the capital.

The institution indicated that due to the strong winds that passed through the Ecuadorian capital, a large amount of smoke and combustion residues occurred in several sectors. CNN showed a large cloud of smoke reaching some neighborhoods and was accompanied by a strong smell of fire.

“Our personnel are already on site to combat and control the fire, ensuring the safety of people and nearby infrastructure,” the fire department said in a statement. Message in X.

The agency also reported two other fires in the La Forestal sectors south of Quito and in La Tula in the center.

Pavel Muñoz, Mayor of Quito, spoke. In your X account About the state of emergency.

“A major fire has activated the entire municipality and the support of the national government. We urge citizens to limit their circulation to what is absolutely necessary to avoid further traffic chaos,” Muñoz insisted.

Daniel Noboa, President of the Republic, who is on a tour of the United States, progress Emergency teams from the Armed Forces are joining the efforts to extinguish the fire in Guabolu.

“I have arranged for all necessary units to be mobilized. Helicopters will come in support once the pilots are safe to carry out their mission,” Nobua noted.

Quito Metropolitan Transit Agency (AMT) I mentioned Simon Bolivar Avenue, in the Guabolu district, has been closed in all its lanes to prevent the passage of vehicles whose occupants could put themselves in danger. In addition, peak metering and license plate (prohibition of the passage of private vehicles from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. local time) have been suspended due to the state of emergency.

Minister of Environment Ines Manzano progress Power service will not be suspended in Quito. However, after the fire, outages were recorded in some neighborhoods due to potential risks in three electrical substations that could be compromised by this scourge, the Quito Electricity Company explained.

Ecuador is currently experiencing power outages at various times due to severe drought, reduced river flows and the inability of power plants to provide more energy.

In addition, over the weekend, 19 of Ecuador’s 24 provinces were declared red alert due to forest fires, water shortages and food security, the government announced.