Record-breaking inferno continues to rage in Peru, killing at least 15 people: “There is no help”

More than 10,000 fires have raged in Peru this year, doubling the previous record set in 2020. The fires have devastated the South American country’s wildlife and ecosystems.

What happens?

Peru’s President Dina Boluarte declared a state of emergency for three regions of her country in September as fires ravaged the Amazon and Andean regions. The most affected regions included Amazonas, San Martin and Ucayali.

Fires this year killed at least 15 people and burned nearly 12 square miles of natural and cultivated land in Peru.

According to Reuters, some of the native spectacled bears seeking shelter in nearby towns were shot dead by startled Peruvian residents in the north of the country. Jaguars that failed to escape flames in the southern Amazon were found charred in trees.

Fires in South America are threatening endangered species and destroying the ecosystems of the spectacled bear, Ecuadorian vizcacha and woolly monkey.

“There is nothing in Peru, that is the problem, there is no help,” Robyn Appleton, founder of Spectacled Bear Conservation (SBC), told Reuters. The SBC is a nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting spectacled bears in the dry forests of northern Peru.

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Why are forest fires important in Peru?

Our overheating planet and poor agricultural practices have helped fan the flames of the growing wildfire problem in Peru and other parts of South America. By mid-September, the Brazilian space research agency had already reported a record number of fires this year, breaking previous records from 2007. More than 346,000 hot spots were discovered across the continent in the first nine months of 2024, according to fire data & Safety Journal Americas.

Climate scientists say our warming world is the main reason for the extraordinary drought in the Amazon basin, making the region more vulnerable to wildfires. The Amazon is experiencing its worst drought in at least 45 years, according to a report from the United Nations Environment Program.

“Since May, fires have ravaged forests and savannahs in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Paraguay and Peru, as drought has led to tinderbox-like conditions in many places,” the report said. “Even the largest tropical wetland in the world, the wildlife-rich Pantanal, has been smoldering for months.”

What is being done about the increasing risk of forest fires?

The nonprofit organization Nature and Culture International, whose mission is “to work side-by-side with local cultures to protect biodiversity hotspots in Latin America for the benefit of our planet,” has deployed team members to the Bolivian Chaco, the Páramo in Peru and Ecuador . They work with local communities to develop wildfire prevention and response skills.

Reducing emissions of carbon pollution and other heat-trapping gases is critical. If we use our voices to raise awareness about climate issues and use our power to vote for climate advocates, we can help.

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