Brasilia (DF) – The humanitarian mission sent by the federal government to Canada has already started its work to combat the forest fires that have been affecting this North American country since January of this year. The Brazilian team, which includes around twenty members of the National Civil Defense, is working in the British Columbia region, one of the 13 provinces affected by the disaster.

Coordinated by the Brazilian Cooperation Agency (ABC), of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Brazilian team has 104 specialists, concentrated in five brigades. Members of the mission must operate on Canadian soil until August 24.

For two days, teams have been on the ground since six a.m. to carry out firefighting activities. “Today, the Brazilian action focused on three specific points and, fortunately, there were no new fires,” underlines the Chief of Staff of the National Civil Defense, Wesley Felinto.

According to data from the Canadian Interagency Wildfire Center (CIFFC), there are currently at least 885 active fires, of which 199 are contained and 566 are out of control. To date, more than 11.1 million hectares have been burned.

In addition to the MIDR, professionals from the Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (Ibama), the Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBIO) and the National Public Security Force (FNSP) , as well as firefighters, participate in the mission. military personnel from the States of Acre, Amapá, Amazonas, Bahia, Ceará, Espírito Santo, Goiás, Maranhão, Mato Grosso, Minas Gerais, Pará, Paraíba, Paraná, Pernambuco, Rio de Janeiro, Rio Grande do Sul, Rondônia, Santa Catarina , São Paulo and Tocantins, in addition to the Federal District.

The Ministries of Defense, Transport and Finance are cooperating in organizing the mission, as well as the National Council of Military Firefighters of Brazil (LIGABOM) and other federal and state departments. The team also includes ten quilombola brigadistas, from the state of Goiás, and nine indigenous brigadistas of the Xerente ethnic group, from Tocantins.

By internal legal decision of the Canadian government, Brazil’s costs for sending the delegation will be reimbursed by this country, which will also offer a plane to transport the Brazilian specialists and their equipment.