Brazil is commemorating the 188th anniversary of its independence today. In Brasília, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva attended the parades in which the air show by the fantastic Esquadrilha da Fumaça (the Smoke Squadron) was, as usual, a top attraction and a grand finale.
Much less desirable smoke has marred the beauty of Brazil's blue winter skies: yesterday the Ministry of the Environment released a decree which placed 14 states (Amapá, Amazonas, Ceará, Maranhão, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Pará, Piauí, Tocantins, Bahia, Goiás and Minas Gerais) and the federal district on an environmental emergency list due to wildfires.
In my hometown of Atibaia, we've had again to suffer through wildfires on the lovely Pedra Grande, or Big Rock, where landowners set fire to weeds. It's awful to see the black scars on the slopes. I talked to one of our firefighters once and he said he'd had a narrow escape while trying to put out a wildfire on the mountain. His boot actually caught fire and partially melted. When I was a teacher in Atibaia, two of my 8th graders also lived harrowing moments when they were cycling on the mountain and suddenly found themselves isolated from the trail by a wall of flames; they took the way out through thick scrub.
According to a wildfire report by the Ministry of the Environment, Brazil has spent more than R$ 29 million (about US$ 16 million) on the fight against wildfires this year.
Parque Nacional (PARNA) das Emas, or Greater Rhea National Park, in Goiás, has been been deeply affected by wildfires. Smokey Bear's message could well be Smokey Maned Wolf's or Smokey Greater Rhea's as it applies to our natural reserves all the same: Only You Can Prevent Wildfires.
If you're traveling in the listed Brazil states this month, be particularly mindful of the environment, stay safe and, if you have asthma or other respiratory conditions which could be worsened by smoke, take extra care of yourself.
About Wildfire Prevention:
The Site of Brazil's Proclamation of Independence:
Photos: Smoke Squadron air show in Brasília today by José Cruz/ABr; Pedra Grande, Atibaia, by Patricia Ribeiro.
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Great site, excellent article, congratulations!
We´d like to show you Brazil during the Independence Week.
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I’m gonna bookmark this one for sure, thanks!
Thanks to visit brasil for the comment! And for those who’d like to learn more about Brazil history, I recommend their timeline – five centuries at a glance!