Brazil: Dense Smoke Covers the Sky Due to the Massive Forest Fires
Smoke remains of the Forest FIres in Brazil, Aug 2024 Photo: @Profittaker8
August 27, 2024 Hour: 7:05 pm
A dense smoke covered the Brazilian city of Manaus on Tuesday, from numerous fires in the Amazon rainforest, and left the air quality in “bad” conditions, according to health services.
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According to the measurements of the Electronic System for Environmental Monitoring (Selva) of the University of the State of Amazonas, in eight areas of this city of two million inhabitants the air quality was “bad” and in seven others, “inadequate”.
The critical air situation in the largest city of the Amazon has significantly increased the number of patients treated in hospitals for respiratory problems, according to the municipal Health Secretariat, which has not provided exact figures.
The smoke significantly reduced visibility in the city, located in the middle of the Amazon rainforest, considered the largest plant lung in the world, and forced drivers to travel with the lights on in broad daylight and slow down.
The problems began to be felt in the afternoon of Monday when a change in the direction of the winds pushed towards Manaus the smoke from the fires that have been registered in the south of the state of Amazonas.
This is the second time in August that a dense smoke covers the city. In the third week of the month, Manaus was covered by smoke for five days in a row.
This is a consequence of the record forest fires recorded in the state of Amazonas and that until last Saturday reached 7,000 in the month.
In the last three months, a record 10,451 fires have been recorded in the state of Amazonas, which are being fought by nearly 800 firefighters, military and volunteers, including the 200 sent on Monday to reinforce the fire brigades.
Autor: OSG
Fuente: EFE-Reuters
