Chile arrests firefighter for allegedly setting deadly fire in February | News

A firefighter and a forestry official were arrested on suspicion of starting a fire in the city of Vina del Mar that killed 137 people.

Chilean authorities have arrested a firefighter and a forestry official on suspicion of setting a fire in the resort town of Vina del Mar in February that killed 137 people.

“An arrest warrant was issued today against the person who set the fires in February in the Valparaiso region, where Vina del Mar is located,” Police Director Eduardo Cerna said at a press conference.

Shortly afterwards, the Valparaiso Regional Prosecutor’s Office confirmed the arrest of a second suspect, an official of the National Forestry Corporation (Conaf), the agency responsible for fighting forest fires and managing national parks.

Both men will be taken into custody on Saturday on charges of arson resulting in death.

On February 2, several fires broke out simultaneously around the coastal city of Vina del Mar, 110 kilometers northwest of Chile’s capital Santiago.

The inferno, the second-worst in the world this century, was fueled by winds and a heat wave that saw temperatures reach around 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit).

Local media reported that the firefighter is a 22-year-old man who joined the volunteer fire department a year and a half ago.

“We are completely shocked by what happened. This is a completely isolated incident. We have served Valparaiso for over 170 years and we cannot allow something like this to happen,” Vicente Maggiolo, commander of the 13th Fire Department of the city of Valparaiso, told reporters.

“A deliberate attack”

Ivan Navarro, head of the environmental crime investigation agency, said detectives had reconstructed what the arrested firefighter did before, during and after the fire.

“We were able to determine the exact locations where the fires started and find the explosive device that started them,” he said. “We were also able to determine the involvement of a second person who is accused of being the mastermind of the arson.”

“He gave him the knowledge to make these devices and also told him the exact times he had to use them so that the fire would cause greater damage,” Navarro said.

Ministry investigators found that the inferno began with small, simultaneous fires near Lake Penuelas in the port city of Valparaiso near Vina del Mar. Hot and windy weather caused the flames to spread quickly.

“There were about four outbreaks at equal distances from each other,” said prosecutor Osvaldo Ossandon.

Materials used to start the fire were found in the house of one of the suspects, he said. Investigators are also looking into possible connections to other arson attacks.

What the motive for the arson was was unclear.

“We all … knew that this was a deliberate attack,” said Vina del Mar Mayor Macarena Ripamonti. “Today we can have that level of certainty.”

Due to a lack of roads, firefighters were unable to reach the scene of the fire or were stuck in narrow streets lined with charred cars.

“This is first and foremost an act of justice and reparation towards those who lost their lives in the fire, towards their families, towards those who lost all their possessions, their job opportunities and their struggle that continues to this day,” said Interior Minister Carolina Toha.