Chile wildfires: Calgarians are raising funds to support victims

Members of Calgary's Chilean community are coming together to raise vital funds for victims of the devastating wildfires in the country's Valparaiso region that have killed more than 130 people and left hundreds more missing.

The news was especially devastating for Calgarians like Moni Villalobos, who waited more than two days to hear back from her cousin, who sent her a video of her destroyed home.

In the video, her cousin, Maria Puntarelli, can be heard speaking heartbrokenly and speaking Spanish to the four exterior brick walls that stand amid the ruins of her roofless home in the hills of the Chilean coast.

“She told me that suddenly she heard sirens, she woke up her family, her two daughters and her husband, to go outside, and that's when they saw ash falling from the sky,” Villalobos said.

“I can't even imagine what the people of Chile are going through, I'm trying to be strong because I know Chileans are strong and we fight for what we need.”

Villalobos' father, Manuel Lillo, said donations are needed in the form of resources to help build permanent homes on the hillside.

He pointed to Chile's housing shortage and the failure of politicians in his country to recognize that many areas are dangerous and vulnerable to forest fires.

“The streets need to be built properly, they need electricity, they need water in their homes,” he said.

“We're in the 21st century and these are dire conditions, there's no motivation to solve the problems, and the poor are suffering here in one of the worst conditions in recent years.”

The Chilean Canadian Community of Calgary (CCCAC) is currently planning two fundraisers to help those affected by the fire.

Two events are scheduled for February 18th and 25th from noon to 6:00 PM at the Chili Cultural Center, located at 4774 Westwinds Drive NE in Unit 519.

CCAC Secretary Dagoberto Correa also helped create a GoFundMe campaign where donations go to two organizations working on the ground in Chile: Un Techo Para Chile and Desafio Laventemos Chile.

Correa received a text message Friday morning from a close friend who lost three family members in the fire. He says fundraising is the least the local community in Chile can do to show support.

“With that level of devastation, the whole neighborhood was destroyed and there was nothing left, and the number of people killed,” Correa said.

“It's very shocking to see people lose everything and people lose their lives.”