The rebirth of Cholchol

It was February 2019 and Evelyn Velásquez, born and raised in Cholchol, in the region of La Araucanía, Chile, was worried about the high temperatures that affected the location, but she never thought that they would cause one of the biggest wildfires of the season and that the fire would get to her house that was located at the top of a hiil.

The living place that she and her husband David built 10 year ago and was home for both of her children was totally consumed by the fire.

“We could have lost our lives, the material things can be recovered”, concludes Evelyn.

So it was. The family of four did escape the fire, and three months later, thanks to the contribution of CMPC they received their definite house.

Evelyn´s family was not the only one. After the huge wildfire that affected La Araucanía, the company compromised and handed 22 definitive houses, 14 of them in Cholchol, 4 in Nueva Imperial and 6 in Carahue.

Today, and guided by the valuable lection they learned the last summer, she and her community have been organized to prevent possible fires. Thus, they have come together to clean weeds that could serve as fuel; they avoid waste burns in summer, between other actions. “Everyone is fighting for not going through the same again”, she assures.