After being criticized for the mishandling of an 8.8-magnitude earthquake in 2010, Mother Nature is apparently testing Chilean Pres. Michelle Bachelet again:
A voracious fire that spread through the hills of the port city of Valparaíso left at least 12 people dead and more than 500 families homeless on Sunday, a day after it forced the evacuation of thousands of others.
The fire began on Saturday in a forest on one of the city’s many steep, heavily populated hills. Strong winds and high temperatures quickly turned it into an uncontrollable blanket of flames that covered the colorful maze of wooden shacks and houses on the city’s hilltops. …
Ms. Bachelet declared a state of emergency for the Valparaíso region on Saturday night, putting the military in charge of public security and the evacuation.
This is the second catastrophe that Ms. Bachelet has faced since she took office more than a month ago. On April 1, a magnitude 8.2 earthquake struck northern Chile, leaving six dead and much devastation.
With an agenda as ambitious as hers, the last thing the president needs is to be dealing with natural disasters.