Firefighters in Bolivia lose hope of taming blazes as burned area doubles

A man works to stop wildfires in Santa Monica near Concepcion, Bolivia, September 21, 2019. REUTERS/David Mercado

CONCEPCION, Bolivia (Reuters) - Bolivian volunteer firefighters, exhausted from battling blazes sweeping rapidly across the country's lowlands, are starting to lose hope and retreat from the front lines of some infernos in the drought-stricken region.

The fires this year are Bolivia's worst in at least two decades, with the size of burned land across the country nearly doubling in under three weeks, destroying swaths of biodiverse forest and ranches and farms that sustain thousands of people.