Forest fires disrupt school activities in Quito due to air pollution

More than 20 schools in Quito began to teach classes online on Thursday due to poor air quality caused by Three forest fires are active in the capital of Ecuador that hundreds of firefighters are fighting by air and land amid strong winds.

Authorities have urged children, the elderly and people with respiratory illnesses to avoid going outside and, if necessary, to take precautionary measures against the polluting effects of smoke and airborne particles.

“The air quality in Quito has been affected,” said Mayor Pabel Muñoz, in statements to the channel Teleamazonas and recommended the use of face masks. He also reported that thousands of animals from a poultry farm and 20 heads of cattle died on Wednesday from asphyxiation. On Wednesday afternoon and evening, 45 people were evacuated from the affected areas.

The Ministry of Education ordered the change from in-person to virtual learning in educational institutions in the affected area yesterday. The measure could be extended depending on how the situation evolves.

Valeria Díaz, a technician from the Municipal Environment Secretariat, explained to The Associated Press that “pollution is beginning to rise” as the hours pass due to the lingering gases that are in the environment and are carried by the winds, added to the smoke from the fires that remain active.

“We can already smell the smoke again,” said Díaz, “and it is recommended that people who are sensitive to the smoke or have respiratory illnesses wear face masks.”

The recommendation was also issued by the municipal department, which in a statement suggested that minors remain inside their homes, especially around midday.

The Quito Fire Department warned on its X account, formerly Twitter, about the presence of fire due to strong winds, so some 600 people are deployed to combat the fire.

The coming and going of the firefighters’ helicopter with its water-discharging system was noticeable in the city, as was the wailing of the sirens of the water tankers. Even so, in the streets of northern Quito, where the atmosphere seemed clear, few people wore face masks.

Regarding the reasons that caused the fires, Muñoz said that the hypothesis includes the burning of plant waste on the land of the residents and did not rule out a premeditated act due to the sequence of fires, for which reason he requested an investigation.

Ecuador is facing a dry season in much of the country and the winds and high temperatures, as well as low humidity, create a favorable scenario for forest fires.

According to the Risk Management Secretariat, 13 fires are still active in the country and another seven are under control.

Air quality has also been reduced in Cuenca, located 300 kilometres south of the capital, due to one of the largest forest fires the country has seen in recent years, which has consumed nearly 5,000 hectares.

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