Fires still besiege Chile port; 15 dead, 500 hurt

VALPARAISO, Chile (AP) — Helicopters and airplanes dumped water on wildfires and the smoldering wreckage of hilltop neighborhoods around Valparaiso for a third straight day Monday as sailors in riot gear stood ready to evacuate 700 more families whose homes could be lost if the winds shifted.

Already 11,000 people were homeless as wildfires sent burning embers flying from hilltop to hilltop. A 15th body was found, and the toll of destroyed homes rose to more than 2,500. As smoke rose from smoldering ruins all over the picturesque coastal city, many compared the scene to Dante’s inferno.