Fire Consumes 70 Homes in Popular Neighborhood of Downtown Bogota

A fire has consumed 70 houses in a popular neighborhood located in downtown Bogota. No fatalities have been reported so far, but the material damages are considerable in the Girardot and Ramirez neighborhoods. According to the first hypothesis that has been presented, the conflagration seems to have been caused by the explosion of a gas cylinder in the early hours of Friday morning. The fire then spread through the adjacent houses, causing several explosions of gas cylinders in the other houses.

“Direct attack and primary search were carried out, without any injured persons being found. Support from the National Police, the District Institute of Risk Management (IDIGER) and the Secretariat of Social Integration was initiated. At the moment, debris removal and control of hot spots is being carried out,” said firefighters’ sources.

Early morning panic

The fire started around 2:30 am. Some neighbors explained that they felt several explosions, which woke them up, and they immediately left their homes. The flames spread rapidly, mainly due to the construction materials of several of these humble homes, which are highly flammable. In addition, many of these homes were used to store recycling materials, which would also have favored the spread of the fire.

A considerable number of these houses are “invasion” houses, that is, built illegally on public land, taking advantage of the slopes of the eastern hills of Bogota. The families who live there are of limited resources, meaning that, with this misfortune, many of them have lost everything and are now left on the street.

Climate emergency declared due to forest fires

Three fire stations responded to the emergency call. Likewise, the Mayor’s Office of Bogota has declared a climatic emergency, due to the polluting particles that several forest fires, which started on March 5, have sent into the capital’s atmosphere. Air quality is particularly poor in the southwestern area of the capital.

“We want to announce that the district has decided to declare an air quality alert in the southwest, since 50% of the air quality monitoring stations have reported for more than 27 hours bad and irregular conditions, which generates a health risk,” explained the Secretary of Environment, Adriana Soto.

Among the measures that this situation entails is the restriction on the mobility of certain vehicles. “For the moment, the restriction will be only for cargo transportation. Vehicles older than 10 years will be subject to the same enforcement measures as vehicles 20 years old in the southwestern area of the city,” said the city’s Secretary of Mobility, Claudia Diaz.

The cloudy day and Bogota’s altitude, more than 2,600 meters above sea level, hinder the dispersion of polluting particles, leaving a gray haze and poor air quality that can harm the health of people with lung conditions.