In Chile, a wildfire has hit most of the state leaving death and destruction in its wake.
According to CNN, “A chain of wildfires has unleashed a catastrophe over wide swaths of central and southern Chile, killing at least 11 people, destroying thousands of homes and consuming an area about three times the size of New York City, authorities said.”
This wildfire is due to the humidity being low and dry conditions.
The Guardian explains, “In the presently arid and water-scarce environment of Chile, the relative humidity of the atmosphere (the ratio of the amount of moisture present in the air to the amount needed for saturation at the same temperature) is extremely low. This, together with extreme summer temperatures and gusty winds, ignites the flames, and drives the rapid, widespread burning.”
Chile has appealed for international help. The United States came to help.
NPR reports, “The Chilean government has appealed for international help. The U.S. Embassy in Santiago said earlier this week that the U.S. government was donating $100,000 ‘for the local procurement and delivery of firefighting equipment, such as chainsaws and weather monitoring tools requested by the National Forestry Corporation.’”
Chile is a predominately Christian country.
According to Christian Aid Mission, “Over 87 percent of the population is identified as Christian, of which 62 percent are Catholic. Most notable is the explosive growth of evangelical denominations over the past 40 years. A Pentecostal revival in 1909 within the Methodist Church gave birth to a dynamic, indigenous movement. Today some 18 percent of the population is considered evangelical. The Mapuche, by far the largest and most independent of Chile´s ethnic groups, are nominally Catholic with a blend of animistic practices. The New Testament was translated into the Mapudungun language in 1997.”
Please pray for Christians to be able to share Christ’s hope with those who don’t know Him. Also pray for the wildfire to get under control.
CNN: Chile wildfires: At least 11 die in catastrophe
The Guardian: Hot, dry conditions fan wildfires in Chile
NPR: ‘A Nightmare Without An End’: Wildfires Burn Out Of Control In Chile
