According to the civil protection authority, around 1,500 firefighters were on duty nationwide on Sunday. Some fires have been active since Thursday, and almost 250 new fires were added on Friday and Saturday. The government ordered a heightened alert.
During this week, the temperatures had partly risen to over 40 degrees and it should get even hotter in the coming days. Two houses have been destroyed in the fires so far. A dozen firefighters and about 20 civilians were injured, but most of those affected received treatment at the scene.
of Portugal Prime Minister António Costa canceled a trip to Mozambique. His government requested the activation of the EU civil protection mechanism. The Portuguese emergency services can then fall back on two fire-fighting aircraft stationed in Spain.
“We are facing an almost unprecedented meteorological situation,” said national civil defense commander Andre Fernandes on Saturday. Scientists see a connection between climate change and more extreme and frequent weather events such as heat waves and wildfires.
Source: Nachrichten
