MINEC reported that it managed to control two forest fires in Mérida

Published at: 13/08/2026 03:22 PM

In Mérida, the Ministry for Ecosocialism (MINEC) reported the attention and control of two vegetation fires that occurred in the municipalities of Santos Marquina and Rivas Dávila, events in response to which the entity's Unified Forest Fire Command was activated.

The accident treated in Santos Marquina took place in Mucunután, a sector where troops and crews from various entities were mobilized, the state director of MINEC - Mérida, Yeivert Castillo, confirmed this Thursday, in statements collected by the Venezuelan News Agency (AVN).

Faced with this possibility, “(...) the Unified Command against Forest Fires was activated,” added Castillo, stressing the joint participation of MINEC and its affiliated entities, the National Parks Institute (INPARQUES) and the Forest Fire Department.

The MINEC Supervisory Unit determined the area where the fire allegedly originated. It also guided the initiation of proceedings by the Mayor's Office of Santos Marquina and the Bolivarian National Police (PNB), to establish responsibilities in the case.

The second reported fire took place in the El Límite sector, Rivas Dávila municipality, a burn that was also controlled, and the cause was determined to be the fall of a high-voltage cable.

Dávila stressed that the timely “attention made it possible to contain and control the fire”, which occurred on land in the General Juan Pablo Peñaloza National Park, which includes the areas of the El Batallón and La Negra paramo, an Area Under Special Management Regime (ABRAE) of vital importance for the conservation of water sources and ecosystems in the territory of the states of Mérida and Táchira.

The technical reports will be sent to the Public Prosecutor's Office, for appropriate investigations, on the understanding that actions or omissions by individuals, causing forest fires, entail sanctions provided for in the Environmental Criminal Law, MINEC said in separate reports, published on social networks.

Mazo News Team