More firefighters and aircraft arrive to battle Cajas blazes as Cuenca air quality improves

At least 300 firefighters are battling wildfires in the Cajas Mountains and more personnel and equipment are enroute, Ecuador’s National Risk Management office announced late Sunday. Seven helicopters, including one from Peru, will be available by Monday afternoon for water drops on fires inaccessible to firefighters, the office said.

More firefighters and equipment arrived over the weekend to battle blazes in the Cajas Mountains, west of Cuenca.

Risk Management said resources are arriving in Loja Province which has also experienced large fires, including one that has burned more than 3,700 hectares in Podocarpus National Park.

Air quality in Cuenca returned to “good” and “moderate” levels on Sunday after briefly reaching the “dangerous” category early Saturday. Skies over Cuenca were mostly clear of smoke Sunday for the first time in more than a week. Weather forecasters at ETAPA credit the improvement to a change in wind direction and the progression of firelines away from the city.

Despite the improvement, Cuenca remains under a state of emergency, which includes a ban on large outdoor gatherings and the closure of Cajas National Park.

In addition to those burning in Cajas National Park, fires continue to burn in the Chaucha parish and in Cruzpamba parish at kilometer 17 of the Cuenca-Molleturo-El Empalme highway.

Cuenca’s Mariscal La Mar airport was busy Saturday and Sunday, as military transport aircraft arrived with firefighting personnel and equipment from other areas of Ecuador. More than 50 firefighters from Quito were receiving assignments Monday morning.

On Sunday, Cuenca Mayor Cristian Zamora said his staff has delivered evidence to prosecutors about individuals he alleges set at least two of the fires in the Cajas and one near Tarqui.