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Death Toll Rises to 123 in Wildfires in Central Chile

by VOA News

   The death toll from a series of wildfires that have burned across
   central Chile now stands at 123 people.

   Authorities say hundreds of people remain unaccounted for after several
   days of fires that have destroyed thousands of homes near the popular
   coastal cities of Vina del Mar and Valparaiso.

   Residents who fled the fires have begun returning to their destroyed or
   damaged homes, picking through the rubble to recover any possessions
   that survived.

   President Gabriel Boric announced two days of national mourning Monday.

   U.S. President Joe Biden issued a statement late Monday saying that he
   and his wife Jill were "deeply saddened by the loss of life and
   devastation" in Chile, and that the "United States is ready to provide
   necessary assistance to the Chilean people."

   Some information for this report came from The Associated Press,
   Reuters, Agence France-Presse.

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