Coincidence or method? Record fires in the state of São Paulo resemble coordinated attacks in the Amazon in 2019

Brasil de Fato

The wildfires that hit the state of São Paulo this weekend and spread across much of the state’s territory and other parts of Brazil may have been a coordinated criminal attack. The scenario resembles what happened in the state of Pará, northern Brazil, in August 2019, when agribusiness people organized forest fires via messaging apps.

Known as the “Day of Fire,” the series of crimes happened between August 10 and 11, 2019, on Amazonian territory. Large state owners arranged to set fire in various locations. At the time, schemes were uncovered which financed the criminal action, with the fuel used in the illegal acts being apportioned.

The result was devastating: the number of hotspots increased by 1,923% compared to the same period last year. In those two days alone, 1,457 fire hotspots were detected in the state, with 53 affecting Indigenous lands and 534 in Conservation Units.

In the state of São Paulo, although the total damage has not yet been estimated, the amount of damage caused by the fires in recent days has also been high. São Paulo broke the national record last Friday (23), with more than 2,300 fires.

The unprecedented environmental crisis caused the death of two firefighters in Urupês and led the state to declare an emergency in more than 40 cities. The consequences are also being felt elsewhere in the country. On Sunday (25), Brasília (the country’s capital), Goiânia and Belo Horizonte were covered in smoke.

In addition, flights were canceled in some cities of Minas Gerais, Goiânia (Goiás’ capital city) and in the countryside of São Paulo. Ribeirão Preto airport, one of the cities hardest hit by the smoke, remained closed until Sunday (26). 

With criminal evidence, investigations have been set up. The Federal Police will begin 31 investigations across the country to find the source of the fires. Two people have already been arrested, accused of starting the fires in the city of São José do Rio Preto and in Batatais.

Environment Minister Marina Silva reinforced her suspicion that the event is related to a coordinated criminal action. “Just as we had the ‘Day of Fire’, there is a strong suspicion that it is happening again now. In São Paulo, it is not natural, under any circumstances, for there to be so many fire hotspots in several municipalities in just a few days. But investigations will tell us that,” she said.

The investigations into the 2019 Day of Fire have made little progress. Both the federal inquiry and the Civil Police investigations have not found anyone directly responsible for the fires, and no one has been arrested so far.