At least 14 Venezuelan immigrants, between them eight little, They died in a fire in an illegal neighborhood this Monday night. slum in the municipality ColonelIn the south-central part of Chile, official sources reported.
According to them, the victims consist of three families. six adults and eight little ones 4 to 13-year-olds living in overcrowded conditions in two dangerous buildings.
Initial investigations show that the source of the accident was: stove malfunction Rice, which one family tries to keep warm in an extremely poor neighborhood where the population is overcrowded and lives without the minimum services required for a decent life.
“The causes of the fire are being investigated. “In principle, it could have been caused by a stove, which the Fire Department said would have caused a large fire, setting fire to the entrance of the house and trapping people inside.” explained Hugo Cuevas, deputy prosecutor in the Bío Bío district.
“There would be a brass or iron stove, wood burning and craftsmanship”added.
Three immigrant families
For its part, the Coronel Municipal Security Department said the victims “three family groups living in overcrowded conditions, “According to the information we received from both the organizations and his family, everyone in the house tried to escape but failed and therefore suffered victimization at the scene,” he said.
In the first place, the deputy mayor of the commune, Javier ValenciaAfter lamenting this tragedy, he stated that there were at least 6 children among the victims.
The tragedy occurred after sunset in one of the dangerous buildings in an illegal neighborhood located in Junction. Nice view According to local media reports, the fire on Central Street, where firefighters arrived, could not control the flames until 20.55 “due to weather conditions in the area.”
“We will work based on DNA. Bodies will be recovered.” Statutory Medical Service (SML) and there, with the support of already individualized family members, the biological correspondence of the persons in question can be established,” the prosecutor emphasized.
Poverty and overcrowding
Shortly after the drama was heard, Chilean Interior Minister Carolina Toha expressed her regret for what happened through social networks and assured the government that: “Our thoughts are with the families and friends of the victims, as well as the general residents of that city.”
“As the government, we have arranged for a delegation of undersecretaries to go to Coronel in the next few hours. I know what’s on the ground “We will coordinate the necessary measures and assistance,” he said.
Coronel deputy mayor Javier Valencia, for his part, expressed concern about the proliferation of seizures like the one that occurred this Monday. Cerro Obligado, He called on the Government to take action, stating that poverty in the country is caused by social exclusion and difficulties in accessing decent housing.
“We want to make a very clear and strong call; considering that the summer season is approaching, the heat, the high temperatures and the places we will encounter, we are concerned that the camps are set up in this way. forestry, rural and urban nature”,emphasized the press.
presidential delegate of the Bío Bío region, Daniela Dresdner, He said that many foreign citizens live in this irregular camp and that work has begun to legalize it since 2022.
“This is a camp that has recently been made official in 2022. It was in the diagnostic phase of the Housing and Urbanization Service (Serviu). This means that work has begun to establish the camp. “It’s a situation where there are a lot of immigrant families, and so there’s a lot of insecurity in this camp,” he explained.
“There are many local and foreign people“But there are many foreigners,” he concluded, noting that “many children” also live here.