In a rare event, fire smoke covers Brazil’s capital, prompting federal response

Associated Press

BRASILIA, Brazil (AP) — The buildings in Brazil’s modernist capital, Brasilia, have been enveloped in smoky air the past two days. Brasilia’s environment institute recorded its first smog alert since its creation in 2007, and public events were canceled. The central part of the country is just the latest region affected by smoke from fires in the Amazon rainforest, Cerrado savannah, the Pantanal wetland and the state of Sao Paulo. President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said on a visit to Brazil’s fire monitoring center that the fires were not caused by lightning but by people setting the fires. His government pledged to step up firefighting and investigations to identify the culprits. Fires are traditionally set for deforestation and managing pasture.