A firefighter was arrested on Friday in Chili accused of being responsible for the fire that caused 137 deaths at the beginning of February in the city of Viña del Marreported the director of the Investigation police (PDI), Eduardo Cerna.
“The arrest warrant was obtained for the author of the fires that occurred in the month of February in the Valparaíso region,” where the city of Viña del Mar is located, Cerna said in a press conference about the results of this investigation. Sinister.
He February 2several fires broke out simultaneously around the coastal city of Viña del Mar, 110 km northwest of Santiago.
The accident caused 137 deaths and 16,000 victimsaccording to official figures.
“Field work, evidence gathering; The analysis, the crossing of information was what made it possible to locate, establish behavioral patterns and geographical publications of displacements” of the detained firefighter, Cerna explained.
Local media reported that the detainee is a 22-year-old firefighter identified as Francisco Ignacio Mondaca Mella, who had entered the unit a year and a half ago.
“We are completely devastated by what happened, it is a completely isolated event (…) we have been serving Valparaíso for more than 170 years and we cannot allow this type of situation.“Vicente Maggiolo, commander of the Fire Corps of the 13th company of that region, told reporters.
The fire in Chile is the second deadliest in the world this century.
From the beginning, local authorities pointed out that it was an intentional act.
“All of us from Viñamarina knew that this had been an intentional attack (…) and today we can have that degree of certainty“said the mayor of Viña del Mar, Macarena Ripamonti.
According to the investigations of the Public Ministry, the fire originated with small simultaneous fires that occurred near the Peñuelas lakein the Valparaíso port, neighboring the city of Viña del Mar.
The heat and intense gusts of wind that day quickly spread the flames.
Firefighters could not put out the fire due to the lack of roads or because they were stuck in the narrow approaches to the city, where rows of vehicles were charred.
“There were approximately four focuses, equidistant from each other.“, added the prosecutor specializing in fires, Osvaldo Ossandón.
Elements that started this fire were found in the detainee’s house. It is also being investigated whether he participated in other previous accidents, Ossandón added.
“This is, first and foremost, an act of justice and reparation to those who lost their lives in the fire, to their families, to those who lost all their property, their sources of work and struggle to this day.“said the Minister of the Interior, Carolina Tohá.
(AFP)
