A sign for the Iguaque Fauna and Flora Sanctuary stands amid burned vegetation on San Marcos Hill following a forest fire in the municipality of Villa de Leyva, Boyaca department, Colombia, on September 20, 2026. (Photo by LUIS LIZARAZO / AFP)
Villa de Leyva, Colombia: Emergency response crews on Monday brought a wildfire partially under control as it threatened the colonial town of Villa de Leyva, one of Colombia's primary tourist gems, according to local officials.
Villa de Levya, situated about three hours north of Bogota in the Andes, is famous for its colonial architecture and cobblestone streets.
A volunteer holds a snake killed by a forest fire on San Marcos Hill in the municipality of Villa de Leyva, Boyaca department, Colombia, on September 20, 2026. (Photo by LUIS LIZARAZO / AFP)
Helicopters were deployed to combat a line of fire that began on Saturday in a forest and ripped across a hill towards the town, forcing the evacuation of two hotels on the slopes.
One hotel was damaged by the flames.
"Yesterday we were able to contain all the hotspots throughout the night (...) near the houses," Carlos Amaya, governor of the department of Boyaca, where Villa de Leyva is situated, told Caracol Radio on Monday.
The town, which attracts nearly a million tourists each year, was shrouded in smoke.
According to regional authorities, in just a day and a half, nearly 300 hectares of forest and moorland were ravaged by the fire. On Sunday, Interior Minister Rodrigo Lara said that the fire was 50 percent contained.
A helicopter drops water on a forest fire on San Marcos Hill in the municipality of Villa de Leyva, Boyaca department, Colombia, on September 20, 2026. (Photo by LUIS LIZARAZO / AFP)
Colombia, which is suffering drier-than-usual conditions due to the EL Nino weather phenomenon, is currently battling nearly twenty active wildfires, according to the latest report from the National Unit for Disaster Risk Management.
El Nino, a weather pattern that raises surface temperatures in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean, brings warmer temperatures, resulting in more droughts and flooding.
A dozen wildfires are also burning in neighboring Ecuador.
Firefighters in Ecuador's capital Quito continued to battle a fire that had burning on a hill near the capital for a fifth straight day.
