Three firefighters die in accident in Tábua
Wildfires are still raging across large parts of the north and central Portugal today: the country has returned to the levels of chaotic inferno of 2017 when over 100 people died in two catastrophic blazes.
This time round, already seven have died – four of them firefighters (see update below) – at least 40 people have been injured (including firefighters), some seriously, scores have had to be treated for respiratory issues, while houses, businesses and property have been destroyed.
Prolonging the Situation of Alert until midnight on Thursday, the country is being bolstered by heavy duty water-bombers arriving from Spain, France, Greece and Italy. But with high winds and high temperatures fanning these blazes; with eucalyptus plantations sending ‘fireballs’ and projections in every direction, the situation is still chaotic, with reports from people caught up in the chaos describing the sense of panic and helplessness.
“Everything’s burning… You can’t see anything… run, run, run…”
The list of towns and villages affected includes Albergaria-a-Velha, Ílhavo, Oliveira de Azeméis, Sever de Vouga, Cacia, Castelo Branco, Baião, Gondomar, Mafra, Cabeceiras de Basto, Vila Pouca de Aguiar.
The minute a press report describes one village ‘surrounded by flames’, there is another.
Old people’s homes and schools have been evacuated – and in the case of the latter, also closed in various areas.
Highways, motorways, bus services are all ‘no go’ as populations battle, alongside over 5,000 firefighters, to get through these desperate days to a point where these fires can be subdued/ dominated, and communities can start counting the cost of a holocaust that seemingly came out of nowhere.
In the midst of all the bad news European Commissioner Ursula von der Leyen has voiced the impossible question: “how can we finance the growing necessity for adaptation and reparations that will be necessary in the coming years”, while climatologist Carlos Câmara told SIC Notícias that what Portugal has been experiencing since the weekend is “completely anomalous.
In 20 years of his profession, he has never experienced anything on the level of what happened over recent days. The fires have “already released 1,000 megawatts” of energy, he said. “From a meteorological point of view, it has been completely anomalous”.
The combination of high temperatures, low humidity, high winds and raging wildfires has meant that any ignition will spark another major conflagration, he said, venturing: “These fires are indomitable”.
Four large blazes in the district of Aveiro alone (at Águeda, Albergaria-a-Velha, Sever do Vouga e Oliveira de Azeméis), have already consumed over 10,000 hectares of land, and are still blazing across a 100 km perimeter. Another 20 or so are ‘causing significant concerns’.
Hopes of making some headway in the combat last night came to nothing because the wind never died down.
Firefighting commander Mário Silvestre explained these fires have “an evolution guided by the wind” – meaning that firefighters are permanently having to change tactics, depending on meteorological conditions.
And due to the ‘urban fabric’ of the north, one minute populations may feel the fire is not threatening their communities, and then next ‘everything can change’ – hence the periodic stampede of evacuations.
With the situation today still described as ‘very complex’, criticisms are already stacking up in the wings.
Popular tabloid Correio da Manhã has run two scathing opinion columns essentially blaming ‘authorities’ for not being ready, not being prepared, leaving populations to their own resources (with weak water pressure, buckets and hosepipes).
Listing the many failings of Portugal, deputy director general Eduardo Dâmaso refers to the “signs of a fragile country without planning, foresight or security” – blaming politicians en masse for looking out for themselves, but never for the people they are meant to be protecting.
In the face of ‘climate change’ and ‘extreme phenomena’, it is probably too simplistic to blame politicians for what is happening – but clearly their ‘inward thinking’ (Dâmaso’s description) will not have helped.
For now, everything rests on the shoulders of the men and women fighting these fires, unable to see for the ash and smoke, completely exhausted. One positive that has to be acknowledged, is that this time round at least there have been no reports of firefighters’ boots disintegrating in the heat, or uniforms melting. That part at least has ‘changed’ over the years.
Five suspected arsonists arrested
In the 48 hours of pandemonium, PJ police have arrested five people on suspicion of arson – the latest being a 33-year-old woman believed to have started fires with the use of ‘direct flame’ between last Thursday and this Monday in the borough of Alvaiázere.
Said the PJ in a statement, her alleged acts saw “an area with a vast forest” including maritime pine, eucalyptus and oak catch fire, “bordering an urban area, endangering the physical integrity and lives of people and homes”, not to mention the wildlife living in hundreds of hectares of Nature.
The other people arrested are believed to be men.
Porto activates emergency plan; minister pledges help to communities affected
Porto has activated its Civil Protection Emergency Plan as a result of the fires raging throughout its district, while the government has been in meetings with mayors of areas under attack, to understand what is needed, and how people can be helped.
There is still a long way to go before these fires are brought under control, and damages can effectively be assessed.
UPDATE: Three firefighters die following accident in Tábua
Two women were among the three firefighters who died this morning when their vehicle was ‘hit by flames’ on the way to Tábua. Another two firefighters managed to escape the accident, with only light injuries. Civil Protection national commander André Fernandes has lamented the deaths, saying “Portugal lost three of its most noble citizens”.
The firefighters were part of the Vila Nova de Oliveirinha fire station. ND
