Technical teams from Chile’s National Forestry Corporation (CONAF), the Chilean Wood Corporation (CORMA) and Firefighters of Chile have met to review lessons from the last forest fire season and strengthen coordination ahead of the next period of increased fire risk.
The joint working plenary session brought together key organizations involved in forest fire prevention, coordination and emergency response. Participants reviewed operational experiences from the previous summer, identified strengths and areas for improvement, and discussed how shared planning can support faster, more effective action during future incidents.
During the meeting, the institutions presented joint work plans, assessed existing coordination mechanisms and considered new lines of action designed to improve team preparedness and optimize response capacity during potential forest fires.
CONAF regional director Álvaro González said the review process was essential before the start of the peak fire season.
“Each season provides us with lessons that we must transform into concrete actions.,,” he said. “Reviewing what we did, identifying what we can improve, and strengthening coordination with the Fire Department and the forestry sector is fundamental to being better prepared. When it comes to forest fires, anticipation and teamwork are key to responding promptly and protecting people, their homes, and our natural heritage.”
Margarita Celis, manager of CORMA Biobío-Ñuble, said the three institutions had made a detailed and systematic effort to apply lessons from previous seasons.
“It has been a very detailed, very systematic effort,” she said. “Which allows us to continue moving forward, to prepare ourselves better, but also to innovate in the face of these extreme situations we are facing as a country, as a world, as a society, and for which we must be able to implement new actions that allow us to confront and prevent forest fires.”
Paolo Fregonara, national operational focal point for the Chilean Fire Department, said the collaboration had been developing since 2024 and was helping improve joint planning.
He said: “Since 2024, CONAF and CORMA have invited us to participate in this working group to collaborate on planning and develop new and improved coordination strategies to address the challenges posed by forest fires in Chile.”
Fregonara also noted that emergency teams continue to face significant gaps and increased pressure from climate-related risks.
“We know that significant gaps remain,” he added. “Climate change and the current situation, with El Niño on the verge of a new summer season, present us with new challenges. However, the dedicated work of the Chilean Fire Department to improve our performance, our firefighting and response actions against forest fires, primarily protecting lives and infrastructure, means that together we can perhaps face these tremendous challenges that not only Chile, but the entire world, is experiencing,”
The plenary created a technical and operational space for turning lessons from previous fire seasons into practical improvements in planning, preparation and response.
CONAF, CORMA and the Chilean Fire Department said they will continue advancing public-private coordination, using lessons learned and new tools to anticipate risks and respond quickly and effectively to future forest fires.
