THOUSANDS of residents of Valparaiso have begun returning to their homes, hours after fleeing a still-smouldering forest fire that threatened the treasured Chilean seaport city, a UNESCO World Heritage site.
The fire claimed one life and led to thousands of evacuations in the historic seaside city, often called the “pearl of the Pacific.” But although it continued to blaze on Saturday and was responsible for numerous injuries overnight, authorities said the fire no longer posed a risk to human life.

Most of the 7000 people who had been evacuated after Chile declared a state of emergency on Friday were permitted to return home, after the fire’s “marginal” night-time spread, according to one official.
But high temperatures and strong winds prevented fire crews from completely extinguishing the flames, particularly on the city’s hillsides, said Deputy Interior Secretary Mahmud Aleuy.
“We are working on the fire’s edges, to halt its spread,” he told a press conference.

The fire began on Friday at a landfill in an area of grassland and pine forest near a major thoroughfare connecting Valparaiso with several villages.
Six civilians and 15 firefighters were reportedly injured, with two of the fire crew in serious condition.
Meanwhile, a 67-year-old woman died from a heart attack, authorities said, after the national emergency office declared a red alert for Valparaiso and the neighbouring city of Vina del Mar.

A total of 300 hectares of land was burned, no houses were destroyed and all evacuees had been permitted to return home except for around fifty who remained in shelters, Aleuy said.
The port city, visited by thousands of tourists every year, is still rebuilding following deadly blazes last April that killed 15 people.
“We have no major difficulties,” said Aleuy, in sharp contrast with last year’s fire, which destroyed thousands of homes, particularly in the city’s poorer neighbourhoods.