The alleged material author of the megafire in the Valparaíso Region, the firefighter of the 13th Company of Placilla Francisco Mondaca, participated during the fight against the emergency that left 137 people deadas confirmed by the same institution.
«Indeed, at some point he was among the firefighters who were mitigating the emergency, who were fighting«, revealed the commander of the Valparaíso Fire Department, Vicente Maggiolowho also admitted that as an institution they are very «affected and «devastated.»
In dialogue with 24 hoursthe official stated that due to this situation they are «working on rethinking our admission processes«.
«To join the Fire Department today you need medical exams and psychological exams, but Yes, we already realized that there is a psychological exam that is triggering something that is not working, we have to sink our teeth«Maggiolo analyzed.
Likewise, he reported that for this they summoned «the Department of Health, the Department of Prevention, the Department of Standardization and all the teams currently working so that these types of situations do not occur again«.
Finally, the commander ruled out the participation of any other Firefighters official from that barracks, detailing that everything the PDI found about this subject «They did it in their private vehicle and at their home«.
DIRECTOR OF CONAF: «HITS THE INSTITUTION»
The other person arrested for this fire is Franco Pino, Conaf officialwho is accused of being the intellectual author of the crime and who, like the other accused, He was remanded this Saturday in preventive detention.
Due to the participation of one of its officials, the executive director of Conaf, Christian Littlehe claimed to feel «quite shocked«and admitted that the situation»It hits the institution and is a pain for the workers«.
In any case, he indicated that «We are not going to allow these types of actions (damage the image of the Corporation)«That’s why we are going to cooperate with everything that is requested regarding the investigation process, so that the institution stands tall.»
Regarding the statements of one of the accused, who indicated that these fires were generated to charge overtimeLittle charged that these payments «It doesn’t mean that I’m going to start more fires.«.
«That is out of context and is what must be clarified in the investigation process.«said the Conaf leader, who revealed that the accused official stopped performing his duties on April 30.
🧵[1/5] Executive Director of CONAF @clittle_conaf addressed, this afternoon, the arrest of a former worker of the institution related to the forest fires of February 2, in the Valparaíso Region.
Follow 👇 pic.twitter.com/m9LrCn5hy7
— CONAF – National Forestry Corporation (@conaf_minagri) May 26, 2024
RIPAMONTI SUPPORTS FIREFIGHTERS
The mayor of Viña del Mar, Macarena Ripamontialso addressed this boisterous investigation, admitting that «It has been a very complicated revelation for everyone.«.
«The first thing I have to say is that the Chilean Fire Department is one of the best institutions we have in this country., that we have to support it. These black spots and these types of situations, with people who do not comply with values and who commit crimes, can exist anywhere, it is a clear representation of that,» said the community leader.
Along these lines, he requested that «the two people who have been arrested can be thoroughly investigated, that everything in this background can be elucidated and that we be told the truth of what is happening behind this crime, which is practically the murder of more than 130 people, with a devastating fire for thousands of families«.
According to Ripamonti, the consequences in Viña del Mar and the other affected communes are not only for now, «but everything that it generates for the coming decades in the city, the loss also of our natural heritage«.
Finally, he recalled that as a Municipality they are plaintiffs in this case, so they will seek to continue requiring «investigations, background information and contributing to the clarification of this situation that is very painful, very revealing for everyone and from which many doubts arise«.
«This is too strong, it is too strong because of the consequences it has, but also because of the technical quality and the place that were professionally occupied by the virtual perpetrators of these murders due to the fire«, closed the mayor.