Award-Winning Photographer Captures Pantanal's Fiery Crisis Ahead of Major London Exhibition
As a major exhibition prepares to open in London, documenting the South American Pantanal wetland as it faces unprecedented environmental threats, the acclaimed documentary photographer Lalo de Almeida recounts the powerful and often harrowing stories behind his award-winning images. Based in São Paulo, Brazil, de Almeida has dedicated more than three decades to photographing socio-environmental issues, with a particular focus on the Amazon region.
Recognition and Commitment to Environmental Storytelling
In 2021, de Almeida's compelling photo essay Pantanal Ablaze earned first place in the environment stories category at the prestigious World Press Photo contest. The following year brought further recognition with the Eugene Smith grant in humanistic photography and World Press Photo's long-term project award for his extensive work Amazonian Dystopia, which meticulously documents the exploitation of the world's largest tropical forest. These accolades underscore his profound commitment to capturing the complex relationship between humanity and vulnerable ecosystems.
The Shocking Reality of the 2020 Wildfires
When news began to circulate about uncontrolled fires devastating the Pantanal in 2020, de Almeida's attention was immediately captured. Together with a fellow journalist, he decided to witness the situation firsthand. The reality upon arrival was nothing short of shocking. The fires raged completely out of control with almost no organised firefighting efforts in place. While familiar with fires in the Amazon, de Almeida describes the Pantanal blazes as incomparably worse.
The most heartbreaking aspect was witnessing the catastrophic impact on wildlife. Countless animals perished in the flames, while many more were left injured, severely burned, or orphaned. De Almeida describes 2020 as a profound tragedy, prompting him to return three more times that year to monitor the situation, a commitment to documenting the region that has continued ever since.
Close Encounters with an Apocalyptic Force
One particularly vivid memory involves a journey to a farm in Aquidauana where firefighters were battling a large blaze. During the trip, multiple columns of smoke appeared on the horizon. Stopping to photograph a seemingly small fire near the Paraíso farm, de Almeida watched as, within minutes, wind transformed it into a powerful, fast-moving inferno. The scene was pure apocalypse – unbearable heat, the deafening roar of burning vegetation, suffocating smoke, all cast in an eerie orange light. The team was forced into a rapid retreat to avoid being consumed by the advancing flames.
Wildlife in Desperate Flight
The fires of 2020 engulfed the BR-262 roadway, a main thoroughfare cutting through the southern Pantanal. With flames surrounding them on all sides, many animals sought desperate refuge in the small ponds along the roadside. De Almeida recalls seeing dozens of typically shy marsh deer standing stunned in these lagoons, seemingly unresponsive to human presence, with no other viable option for survival. This surreal scene highlighted the absolute disruption of natural behaviour caused by the catastrophe.
Along the Transpantaneira highway, a renowned wildlife spotting location, the aftermath was equally grim. The roadsides were littered with carbonised remains of alligators, snakes, and tortoises – animals less capable of swift escape. The survivors presented an even more haunting picture: injured and disoriented, they wandered like zombies through the smoke, lost and searching for water amidst extreme drought conditions.
Systemic Failure and Resigned Realism
Initial coverage revealed a stark lack of preparedness. A hotel serving as a firefighter base was itself being evacuated while surrounded by flames. There was no coordinated response, leaving the vast biome essentially defenceless against thousands of scattered fires. A telling encounter with a lone firefighter watching a wooden bridge burn captured the overwhelming sense of resignation. "The fire in the Pantanal will only end when it rains or when everything burns down," he stated. This grim prediction proved accurate, with the fires only ceasing with the eventual arrival of rain.
The Return of Fire in 2024
In August 2024, the Pantanal ignited once again with fierce intensity. De Almeida's attempt to reach the origin point of the Nhecolândia blaze was halted by thickening drift smoke. Taking shelter at the Paraíso Ranch retreat, what began as a distant, manageable fire was suddenly whipped by wind into a terrifying wall of flame. The indraft created by the heat sucked the fire forward, destroying everything in its path and creating a hellish atmosphere of crackling trees and orange-tinged air. The experience was so visceral that the scene replayed in his mind long after.
Anonymous Heroes and a New, Worrying Normal
Amid the devastation, de Almeida found a source of inspiration in the resilience of the Prevfogo fire brigade from Ibama, the federal environmental agency. This team, composed of farmers from Piauí who had travelled thousands of kilometres to help, worked gruelling 12-hour shifts in extreme heat and dangerous conditions. Their dedication represented the only glimmer of optimism during the 2020 crisis.
Returning to the Santa Tereza Ranch in 2024, de Almeida was confronted with a devastating sense of déjà vu. The ranch, devastated in 2020, was once again destroyed, littered with the bodies of tapirs, monkeys, and birds. This repetition led him to a sobering conclusion: this may no longer be a freak accident but the "new normal" for the Pantanal. The biome's natural resilience is being overwhelmed by frequent, intense wildfires fueled by drought and water loss, leaving no time for recovery. Despite increased awareness and preparedness, the fires remain largely uncontained, serving as a gut-wrenching reality check on the impacts of human activity.
A Global Message and London Exhibition
De Almeida hopes his work transcends being viewed as a distant tragedy. The reality of the Pantanal serves as a powerful, instructive example of the global impacts of human actions on our planet. He emphasises that we are all interconnected, and the crisis in the wetlands is a concern for everyone. His powerful images, alongside the work of photographer Luciano Candisani, will be featured in the exhibition Water Pantanal Fire at London's Science Museum, offering UK audiences a poignant look at this pressing environmental emergency.
