In the mountainous countryside of Tolima, Colombia, farmers, soldiers, firefighters, and emergency crews are locked in an exhausting battle against wildfires that have already consumed roughly 50,000 hectares (about 123,500 acres), according to regional government figures. Reporters from El Tiempo traveled through the hardest-hit areas, from the town of Coello to the hills surrounding the city of Ibagué, witnessing firsthand the scale of the destruction.
In the rural village of Chagualá, farmer Jairo Berrío Mendoza described watching flames tower up to 15 meters (nearly 50 feet) high, producing a roar like a windstorm carrying fire within it. His home was scorched, his front door melted shut, and his bicycle—one of his only means of transportation—was reduced to a charred, tire-melted wreck. Terrified livestock stampeded into roads as panicked chickens ran and flapped in confusion, unsure whether to flee on foot or by wing.
Beyond the dry-season conditions fueling the blazes, authorities are investigating whether some fires were deliberately set, possibly linked to armed groups operating in the area. Community leaders like Diana Marcela Gutiérrez, who heads a local neighborhood council, are struggling to coordinate aid as new fire outbreaks continue to spring up even after others are brought under control.
For the full on-the-ground account, read the original report at El Tiempo.
Image: Edna Winti, BY 2.0 (via Openverse).