Forest fires in Colombia surge amid post-earthquake recovery

A number of emergency response agencies in Colombia are now facing an unprecedented multi-front crisis, as dozens of forest fires continue to burn and spread rapidly.

The situation is further complicating recovery efforts following the magnitude 7.4 earthquake that struck the country earlier this week.

A total of 344 municipalities have been placed on red alert due to the threat of forest fires, reflecting a dramatic single-day surge of 93 percent.

The forest fires in hundreds of Colombian municipalities have been triggered by extreme heat and dry conditions, according to the Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies (IDEAM).

Authorities have deployed firefighters, military units, emergency personnel and aerial support in an urgent effort to extinguish the flames.

Regional reports in Colombia indicate that the area of destroyed vegetation, farmland and residential areas has exceeded 11,000 hectares across various regions.

Local environmental forecasts also offer little hope of improvement.

The increasing number of forest fires is placing a heavy burden on emergency response teams already deployed at maximum capacity to handle the aftermath of the earthquake on 10 August.

As a result of the earthquake, official reports from the disaster management unit recorded 288 fatalities, 4,018 injuries, 12,504 destroyed homes and more than 80,000 damaged buildings.

The emergency response situation is further complicated because the national risk management agency is also monitoring increased activity at the Puracé volcano in the Cauca region, forcing authorities to address multiple major natural disaster threats simultaneously.