Brazil deploys firefighters to combat wildfires in Bolivia

A humanitarian mission of 62 Brazilian firefighters has been deployed to combat forest fires along the Bolivia border. The team includes 37 military personnel from the National Public Security Force, under the Ministry of Justice and Public Security, and 25 firefighters from the Federal District Military Fire Brigade. Brazil’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs is coordinating the operation, led by a disaster specialist from the Ministry of Integration and Regional Development.

According to a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the fires along the border pose a threat to the Brazilian Pantanal. The mission aims to assist Bolivia in controlling the fires and to prevent new outbreaks from spreading into Brazil.

Overflights and satellite mapping are planned to identify fire outbreaks along the Bolivian border with Mato Grosso and Mato Grosso do Sul, the Brazilian states that encompass the Pantanal biome.

In recent weeks, 112 fires have been reported in the region. As of Sunday, 18 remained active, 23 were under control, and 71 had been extinguished.

The mission began last Thursday (Sep. 5) with an advanced team traveling to Bolivia. The joint command will operate from San Ignacio de Velasco, in the department of Santa Cruz, approximately 315 kilometers from the Brazilian border.