Thousands flee homes in Chile as fire threatens port city ValparaisoMarch 14, 2015 - 10:04 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Chilean authorities have declared a state of emergency as a raging forest fire forced thousands of people to flee their homes. The fire is threatening the port cities of Valparaiso and Vina del Mar, BBC News reports. The interior ministry said about 4,500 people had already been evacuated and another 10,000 might need to be moved. Valparaiso is still recovering from a forest fire last April that killed 15 people, injured more than 500 and destroyed nearly 3,000 homes. The fire began at an illegal garbage dump on Friday, March 13 afternoon, officials said, and spread quickly fanned by strong winds. By late Friday, Chile's Emergency Office estimated that about 300 hectares (740 acres) had been affected. Emergency crews battled through the night to keep the flames from reaching residential districts in Valparaiso. Three firefighters have been injured so far and a 67-year-old woman died of cardio-respiratory causes, the interior ministry said. Valparaiso's poorest areas, often made up of little more than wooden huts, were worst hit by last year's devastating fire.Entire neighbourhoods were razed to the ground and many of those who died were found in the burned-down homes they had refused to leave. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Get Started: An educational platform for young startuppers The Get Started program which operates in two phases is an important platform for young startuppers. Byblos Bank Armenia celebrates Students' Day with scholarship recipients YSU students who received scholarships from Byblos Bank Armenia gathered in a casual setting to meet with the Bank's CEO, Hayk Stepanyan. Azerbaijan extends Rune Vardanyan’s arrest by 5 months A court in Azerbaijan has extended the arrest of former Nagorno-Karabakh leader Ruben Vardanyan by five months. Armenia border residents dissatisfied with delimitation Residents Kirants are dissatisfied with the results of the delimitation of the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan. |