Near the Amazon fires, residents are sick, worried, and angry
Porto Velho, Brazil—A popular hymn describes the sky above this Brazilian city of more than 400,000 people as forever blue. But this week, Porto Velho, along with much of the Amazon basin, has been shrouded in gray smoke as forest fires continue to rage across the region.
Although as a rainforest the Amazon historically has not burned on its own, deforestation over time has made the ecosystem drier, and fires have become common this time of year, which is normally marked by dry and cooler weather. Many fires are set by ranchers and farmers seeking to clear land for cattle grazing and agriculture. This year, however, satellite data from Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research (INPE) has shown an increase of almost 85 percent in fires across the country from 2018, mostly in the Amazon region.
The situation is particularly acute in northwestern Rondônia state, of which Porto Velho is the capital. Here, fires are up 190 percent from last year, INPE reports, despite weather conditions being roughly the same. The state is known as cattle country and is among the most deforested in Brazil. This year, ranchers appear to have set far more fires than in previous years and as a result, large swaths of the state have been burning, seemingly out of control.
Smoke everywhere
Earlier this week, Porto Velho’s airport had to be closed as the fire raged right up against its perimeter, barely skirting a fuel depot. Charred palm trees now greet visitors on their arrival. In the city, the smoke is noticeable even deep within a large shopping mall and inside sealed hotel rooms. The number of people admitted to state hospitals with pneumonia, severe coughing and other respiratory illnesses has tripled in the last week, according to local news reports.
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