Smoke billows during a fire in an area of the Amazon rainforest near Humaita, Amazonas State, Brazil, Brazil August 14, 2019.
Large areas of forest in the Amazon Basin in Brazil and south of it are currently on fire.
Plumes of smoke could be seen over other countries. The forest is on fire not only in the Amazon region, but also in southern Brazilian provinces, Paraguay, Bolivia, Peru and Argentina. Smoke blew as far as Sao Paulo and darkened the sky above the skyscrapers there on 19 August.
For days, frightening pictures and videos have been circulating on the Internet showing how the flames are eating their way through the 'earth's lungs'.
The Brazilian National Institute for Space Research (Inpe) announced that it had recorded a total of 74,155 forest fires between the beginning of the year and 21 August. Compared to the previous year, this represents an increase of 84 percent. This is the highest since record-keeping began in 2013. The institute relies on satellite imagery.
To illustrate the extent of the problem, the Inpe also announced that 9,507 forest fires had broken out in the few days between Thursday 15 and Tuesday 20 August.
Smoke billows during a fire in an area of the Amazon rainforest near Humaita, Amazonas State, Brazil, Brazil August 14, 2019.
This August 21, 2019, satellite image obtained courtesy of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) shows the smoke of several fires in the Brazilian states of Amazonas of Mato Grosso (bottom R) and Rondonia (bottom C). Wildfires in the Amazon rainforest in northern Brazil have ignited a firestorm on social media, with President Jair Bolsonaro on Wednesday suggesting green groups started the blazes.
Smoke billows during a fire in an area of the Amazon rainforest near Porto Velho, Rondonia State, Brazil, Brazil August 21, 2019.
This handout NASA Earth Observatory image obtained on August 21, 2019, captured by Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA's Aqua satellite shows several fires burning in the Brazilian states of Amazonas.
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