Wildfires

Wildfires - Chile

Chile declared a state of emergency Friday as more than a dozen wildfires that have scorched nearly 50,000 hectares (123,500 acres) threatened to encroach on towns, factories and vineyards.

Firefighters, forestry service personnel and members of the military were battling 18 separate blazes in the centre and south of the country that have been fuelled by strong winds and a heat wave.

The largest has consumed 24,000 hectares in and around Pumanque, a rural area 140 kilometres (87 miles) south of the capital, Santiago, that is near some of Chile's vineyards.