For the past three weeks, one of the biggest natural resources that our dying planet has left has been slowly being decimated by flame - and much of the media haven't even reported on it. The Amazon Rainforest, located primarily in Brazil in South America, is one of the largest areas of biodiversity. Not only that, but the sheer amount of plant life there has led to it gaining the nickname "the lungs of the world."
But, for the past twenty days, this stunning (and essential) part of the world has been under siege by a truly enormous and destructive forest fire. Horrifying photos show the extent of the disaster. And some suspect that this tragedy is far from accidental.
Located in the north of South America, the Amazon Rainforest is an outstanding area in nature.
But, for many years, the Amazon has been in trouble.
But the most recent destruction of the Amazon is perhaps the most galling.
For many days at this point, the Amazon Rainforest has been rampaged by an enormous and terrifying forest fire. As of yet, the causes are unknown - but it's frightening that such a humid area has managed to burn for quite so long.For some reason, this fire hasn't attracted many headlines.
The Amazon Rainforest is burning. The Amazon Rainforest is burning. I repeat, THE AMAZON RAINFOREST IS BURNING. C… https://t.co/JN0I6Qwpgw— BrooklynDad_Defiant! (@BrooklynDad_Defiant!)1566306641.0
The news has started to gain traction.
The #AmazonRainforest , The lungs of the earth, has been burning for 3-weeks straight and there is very little medi… https://t.co/HpczsXYwjl— Aesthetic Sharer ZHR (@Aesthetic Sharer ZHR)1566384150.0
Every minute that the fire burns...
The Amazon rainforest has been burning for 3 weeks! We are on the verge of losing it completely if the fire isn't p… https://t.co/MjsjobvT7D— StanceGrounded (@StanceGrounded)1566308948.0
But the burning forest snaps aren't the only horrific images shared.
🌎Just a little alert to the world: the sky randomly turned dark today in São Paulo, and meteorologists believe it’s… https://t.co/OQv4cbdfUl— Shannon Sims (@Shannon Sims)1566266657.0
And some of the most terrifying pictures?
The Amazon Rainforest is literally being burned to the ground and the smoke is already coming to Sao Paulo. That's… https://t.co/jLTJ7xhd7r— Foxy Tobe (@Foxy Tobe)1566248832.0
The shots look like something from a horror film.
São Paulo, 3:30 PM #gothamcity https://t.co/KyR1YOGg8q— Leandro Mota (@Leandro Mota)1566239375.0
But there's a more immediate worry.
This is the sky of the biggest city in the country of Brazil, São Paulo at 2-3 P.M. The smoke of the burning Amazo… https://t.co/J82CVPnyhj— StanceGrounded (@StanceGrounded)1566318161.0
Just look at this.
There’s more: some São Paulo residents collected rain yesterday when the sky turned dark (from a combination of a c… https://t.co/P1MU1mwaMv— Shannon Sims (@Shannon Sims)1566363920.0
Locals have shared other frightening images.
Essa é a cor da água de chuva que caiu aqui em Mauá/SP #SP1 https://t.co/O0ptafZW9P— Fabíola (@Fabíola)1566315462.0
Here's another.
GENTE... vocês viram que choveu agua preta?? Serio sem brincadeira nenhuma! Por isso o céu tava muito estranho.. cr… https://t.co/191S3etz29— Frɑn⁷ ᴮᴱ by Nɑmjoon (@Frɑn⁷ ᴮᴱ by Nɑmjoon)1566267953.0
And some have pointed out this worrying fact.
This is Sao Paulo today, 4PM. The cloud from the burning of Amazon rainforest in Rondonia, covered the city. Sao P… https://t.co/PHp8xdNOEq— Beyond the Shadows (@Beyond the Shadows)1566243479.0
And, now, NASA has shared yet more horrifying images.
Many believed that the Amazon was essentially fireproofed.
But environmental changes over the years left it vulnerable.
There are other huge worries, too.
10% of all know species are native to the amazon rainforest, we could literally lose SO many animals and plants but… https://t.co/8JKncFll69— beth (@beth)1566339840.0
There seems to be little coming back from this.
The Amazon Rainforest could be converted into barren desert *overnight*. 🔺response to rising global temperatures… https://t.co/R0iceTaY1f— Ben See (@Ben See)1566304942.0
And this isn't the only crisis that we're facing.
The Amazon Rainforest, one of the wettest places on Earth, is on fire. Siberia, one of the coldest places on Ear… https://t.co/3sOxpl7qUH— Eugene Gu, MD (@Eugene Gu, MD)1566293319.0
Many are concerned about one man in particular.
He's a man known for prioritizing profit.
And some of his campaign promises revolved around making Brazil more economically powerful. The problem is that he appears not to care about the other costs of making money.Which means that he's more than happy to destroy the Amazon for money.
Many cattle ranchers are keen to purchase large areas of rainforest land in order to raise cows for meat. The problem is, once the rainforest is gone, it will never grow back.But that doesn't seem to matter to Bolsonaro.
dont pretend like the amazon being on fire is a devastating side affect of climate change or even an accident in an… https://t.co/bBXsefNQs6— baby_ski says: ACAB (@baby_ski says: ACAB)1566426777.0
Which is a pretty frightening thought.
The idea that someone would prioritize money over life on Earth seems hard to comprehend. But it also means action by the rest of the world is all the more urgent.Others suspect that things run even deeper.
Weird how the indigenous women of the Amazon won their case and now the fucking place is on fire. That’s not a coin… https://t.co/igpRDkUdwA— Cherish Autumn Feather (@Cherish Autumn Feather)1566487018.0
And some want institutional action to be taken.
The deliberate fires in the Amazon should be treated as war crimes against humanity and prosecuted in the Hague— Sue Hubbard (@Sue Hubbard)1566558306.0
Because, more than just affecting innocent animals and indigenous people...
The destruction of the Amazon is something that will have an adverse effect globally. Some have even proposed it to be something of an early indicator of the apocalypse. Cheery stuff, we know.And one indigenous woman has spoken out.
People are deliberately starting fires in the #AmazonRainforest to illegally deforest indigenous land for cattle ra… https://t.co/6I73qzmsGC— Sunrise Movement 🌅 (@Sunrise Movement 🌅)1566397344.0