By Michael Rios, Tara John, Taylor Ward, Veronica Calderon, Ana Melgar Zuniga and Mauricio Torres, CNN
Colombia on Thursday declared a crisis scenario due to wildfires raging in several parts of the country, as the president warned that the situation could worsen.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro declared a “situation of crisis and calamity” and told reporters that budgets approved in the past for other purposes were being redirected to deal with the crisis.
The government is also seeking foreign help, he said, adding that the United States, Chile, Peru and Canada, “which take great delight [in fighting the fires],” responded to the call. Petro said he is also seeking cooperation from the United Nations and the European Union.
The fires are the result of hot and dry conditions linked to the El Niño weather phenomenon, according to officials. El Niño is expected to continue for the next few months before ending during the Northern Hemisphere spring.
Petro warned that the situation, which he described as a “climate crisis,” will get worse. “We are going toward an increasingly difficult stage,” he said.
Temperatures across much of the country have been 5 to 10 degrees Celsius above normal in recent days and weeks. Many locations are in the mid to even upper 30s C (upper 90s to low 100s F) and are coming on the heels of above-average temperatures across the region in recent months.
At least 25 active fires were reported Thursday through the National Disaster Risk Management Unit. Ten are suffocated and 217 have been extinguished, the firm said.
Plumes of smoke filled parts of the country and caused flights to be canceled in the capital, Bogota.
The city’s El Dorado Airport operated with restrictions Thursday morning due to low visibility due to smoke and fog.
“We estimate that the phenomenon is composed of 70% fog and 30% smoke,” reported the Colombian Civil Aviation Authority in X.
At least 138 flights were affected, 48 were canceled and 16 were diverted to airports, the authority said.
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