The incident, as recounted by Amândio Dinis, took place this afternoon in Espinho, a small village with five residents, situated at the base of a slope near Sobral Gordo and Sobral Magro, which were in urgent need of assistance.
“The firefighters were stationed in the village of Corgas, and I went to call them because they had nothing left to do there; everything was already burned,” said the local official. When the firefighters replied that they did not know the way, he offered to guide them to the location.
As they ascended the mountain, they encountered mimosas blocking the path, prompting the president of the parish council to urge the firefighters to clear the trees. To his surprise, the operatives responded that they did not have a chainsaw, attributing it to them being “urban firefighters or something,” he declared.
As a contingency, the local official contacted an acquaintance, a contractor by profession, who subsequently cut down the trees.
The ‘delegation’ continued on their journey, but upon arriving in the village, Amândio Dinis realized that the firefighters accompanying him had turned back.
“They received an order from command and turned around. Can you believe it? They were almost here and then just turned back,” he criticized.
“Initially, they said they didn’t have a chainsaw. In the end, they had a small chainsaw. They did some cutting but were reluctant,” he added.
“‘You shouldn’t have brought us here,'” the operatives reportedly told the council president.
Amândio Dinis indicated that the firefighting contingent in Corgas consisted of four vehicles, but only one vehicle and the command accompanied him to the village of Espinho, located about seven kilometers away, turning back three kilometers before reaching the destination.
“If they are urban firefighters and not here to combat [the fire], considering this is a forest area, what are they doing here?” questioned Amândio Dinis.
“It’s a disgrace; those commanding everything must be sitting behind a desk,” lamented the official.
The territory of the Pomares parish, where the Piódão fire had already affected on Wednesday, was entirely consumed by the flames on Thursday and today, according to the parish council president.
“Everything burned, all the forest area, but the villages were saved,” he described.
The Arganil fire extended into the municipalities of Oliveira do Hospital and Pampilhosa da Serra, all in the district of Coimbra, as well as Seia (Guarda) and Covilhã (Castelo Branco).
As of 10:30 PM, according to the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority’s website, the Arganil fire was being battled by 1,019 operatives, supported by 343 vehicles.
