The national government has officially declared a state of emergency due to the severity of the forest fires affecting Santa Cruz province. The measure was enacted through a decree of necessity and urgency, published in the Official Gazette. The decree warns that the hydrometeorological conditions—drought, electrical storms, and above-normal temperatures—constitute an emergency scenario that poses significant environmental damage and a danger to human life. It states that the operational response capacity has been exceeded by the magnitude of the fires, requiring an 'effective and urgent' response from the National State to coordinate public resources. The Federal Emergency Agency (AFE) will be responsible for articulating the firefighting actions. This declaration expands the scope of the January decree, which had already established a one-year state of emergency for the provinces of Chubut, Río Negro, Neuquén, and La Pampa.
