President Boric declares a "catastrophe" after wildfires in Chile claimed 18 lives and destroyed hundreds of homes.

Authorities reported that wildfires raged across Chile on Sunday, killing at least 18 people and destroying hundreds of homes as the South American nation suffers from a heat wave.

In the midst of these events, Chilean President Gabriel Boric proclaimed a state of catastrophe in the country's central Biobio region and the nearby Nuble region, which is located about 500 kilometers south of Santiago, the capital.

According to Chilean Security Minister Luis Cordero, the emergency designation enables better coordination with the military to contain two dozen wildfires that have so far burned through 8,500 hectares and forced 50,000 people to flee. "Every resource is accessible," Boric posted on X.

However, local authorities stated that for hours on Sunday, there was widespread devastation and no federal assistance.

Rodrigo Vera, mayor of Penco, a small coastal town in the Biobio region, said, "Dear President Boric, from the bottom of my heart, I have been here for four hours, a community is burning and there is no (government) presence." "How can a minister do nothing but call to inform me that the military will eventually arrive?"

Strong winds and intense heat, with temperatures reaching 38 degrees Celsius on Sunday, made it difficult for firefighters to put out the flames.

Locals claimed that after midnight, the fires caught them off guard and trapped them inside their houses. A lot of people chose not to flee. John Guzmán, 55, surveyed the scene in Penco, where smoke covered the sky in an orange haze, saying, "They stayed in their houses because they thought the fire would stop at the edge of the forest."

It was totally uncontrollable. Nobody anticipated it. One municipality in Concepcion, Biobio, reported 253 homes destroyed, though the exact number of homes burned nationwide was still unknown.

Juan Lagos, 52, who was also in Penco, stated, "We ran, with the kids, in the dark." Cars, a school, and a church were all set on fire as the fire spread throughout the majority of the city. Charred bodies were discovered in cars, on roads, in homes, and in fields. Víctor Burboa, 54, stated, "From what we can see, there are people who died ... and we knew them well." "They were known to everyone here."