Wildfire Destroys 20 Percent of Brasilia Forest, Arson Suspected

BRASILIA—Firefighters succeeded on Wednesday in reducing the extent of a massive wildfire that blazed for two days and destroyed 20 percent of a forest in the Brazilian capital, cloaking the city in clouds of gray-white smoke, according to officials, who suspect that it may have been started by arsonists. The National Forest of Brasilia is a conservation area that extends over 5,600 hectares of woodland that protects the springs that are the source of 70 percent of the city’s freshwater. The fire broke out at the peak of the dry season when vegetation is parched and temperatures high allowing flames to spread fast....