Wildfires threatening two of Chile's largest coastal cities prompted authorities to order the evacuation of some urban areas Friday. Hundreds of hectares had been burned by brush fires in the Valparaiso region. "The most important thing is to save human lives," dpa quoted deputy Interior Minister Mahmud Aleuy as saying in announcing that the military and police would take control over the affected zones. The ministry's national emergency office said the fires had entered the hills around Valparaiso and Vina del Mar and were threatening to roar into populated areas. Nearly 20,000 people had moved out of their homes as the fires raged out of control. Seven firefighters had suffered injuries, two of them were in critical condition, officials said. In April, a wildfire killed 15 people and destroyed about 3,000 homes in the port city of Valparaiso.
