Conaf Valparaíso recognizes the work of its personnel during the highest-risk period for forest fires

At the Casablanca Cultural Center, the National Forestry Corporation (Conaf) of the Valparaíso Region held a ceremony to recognize the work of its firefighters, technicians, prevention specialists, and collaborators during the period of highest probability of forest fire occurrence 2025-2026, highlighting their commitment to caring for the environment, people, and communities.

The event was attended by the mayor of Casablanca, Rodrigo Martínez; the president of the Regional Council of Firefighters of Valparaíso, José Luis Molina; the head of the Office of Emergency and Disaster Management of the Regional Presidential Delegation of Valparaíso, Carla Marín; the head of Risk and Disaster Management of the Provincial Presidential Delegation of Marga Marga, Samuel Valencia; the regional head of Risk and Disaster Management of Senapred, Brian Rahmner; and the co-founder and executive director of the video surveillance and early detection project for incidents “Ojos de Águila,” Erick Morales.

In this regard, the regional director of Conaf, Sandro Bruzzone, explained that “we recognized the best brigade, the best firefighter, the best work environment, and ongoing performance in prevention. We also recognized an outstanding citizen (Erick Morales), external to the Corporation, who manages, provides, and delivers information to us through cameras, making a fundamental contribution to the detection of forest fires.”

For his part, the head of the forestry institution’s Palma 26 brigade (Villa Alemana), Cristian Montoya, who received two recognitions during the event—best brigade chief and best brigade—emphasized that “this is an achievement made possible thanks to teamwork, the unity we formed. There was a lot of enthusiasm, motivation, and dedication this season.”

He also stressed that “our role is to protect and care for human lives, flora, and fauna.”

Finally, the acting regional head of Conaf’s Department of Forest Fire Protection, Oscar Fernández, valued the work of people fighting fires from different fronts, since “the Valparaíso Region has a fairly broad ecological and demographic diversity, which makes it highly vulnerable.”

During the period of highest probability of forest fire occurrence 2025-2026, which began on July 1 of last year and ends on June 30 of this year, Conaf has recorded 575 incidents in the Valparaíso Region, which have consumed 2,435 hectares of vegetation.

Compared to the previous season, the region records a slight increase of 6% in the number of incidents, but a decrease of 9% in the area affected by flames.

Recognitions

As part of the ceremony held in Casablanca, Conaf awarded the following recognitions:

1. Special award: Erick Morales (co-founder and executive director of the “Ojos de Águila” project).
2. “Tomás Araya” award: Camila Cortés (forest fire prevention specialist), Verónica Campos (food handler), Iván Gatica (mobile command post driver), Teresa Henríquez (food handler), Eduardo López (forest fire prevention specialist), and Nataly Mondaca (forest fire prevention specialist).
3. “Sergio Calderón” career award: Sandro Bruzzone (regional director of Conaf), Daniel Ariz (head of the Forest Fire Prevention section), Claudio Garrido (head of the Logistics section), and Ana Parrao (head of Environmental Education and Dissemination).
4. “Eduardo Calderón” award:
5. Best crew chief: Felipe Aguilera (Palma 32, Valparaíso).
6. Best brigade chief: Cristian Montoya (Palma 26, Villa Alemana).
7. Best firefighter: Esteban Cataldo (Palma 18, Santo Domingo).
8. Best Work Environment award: Palma 10 (El Quisco) and Palma 23 (La Cruz) brigades.
9. Best brigade “Rozón de Plata” award: Palma 26 brigade (Villa Alemana).