The fire in Piódão, in the municipality of Arganil, Coimbra, which began on August 13, continued to engage a significant number of resources this morning, according to Civil Protection. As of 8:00 a.m., 1,316 personnel and 445 ground units were on-site, making it the only active fire of significant occurrences under the criteria of the National Authority for Emergency and Civil Protection (ANEPC).
The fire in Pedrógão Grande, Leiria, which started on Saturday and prompted the precautionary evacuation of some villages, was in the resolution phase this morning. Nevertheless, 671 personnel with 216 ground units remained on-site this morning.
The GNR command in Leiria informed the news agency Lusa that all roadways affected by the fire had been reopened to traffic, including National Road No. 350 (EN350) between the Outão junction and Pedrógão Grande.
This road had been restricted on Saturday night following the reopening of the Complementary Itinerary No. 8 (IC8) and EN2.
This Sunday morning, the ANEPC recorded new bushfires in Castanheira do Ribatejo, Vila Franca de Xira, in the Lisbon district, and in Águas Mortas, Baião, in the Tâmega and Sousa region, which were quickly brought under control.
By 8:00 a.m., the ANEPC recorded 30 fires in mainland Portugal, involving 2,414 personnel and 796 ground units, with no aerial units operating yet.
Fire risk remains high or very elevated
The risk of fire remains high or very elevated in various municipalities, especially in the northern and central interior, despite weather forecasts predicting a slight decrease in maximum temperature.
The maximum temperature is expected to reach 34 degrees Celsius in Bragança and Évora, according to the Portuguese Institute of Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA).
The forecast includes periods of very cloudy skies, with the possibility of light rain or drizzle north of Cabo Raso until mid-morning.
Winds will generally be light from various directions, becoming light to moderate (up to 30 km/h) from the west quadrant starting late morning, and occasionally strong (up to 40 km/h) in higher regions from the afternoon.
Fires have already caused four deaths
Mainland Portugal has been affected by multiple large-scale rural fires since July, primarily in the North and Center regions.
The fires have already resulted in four deaths, including a firefighter, and several injuries, some serious, and have completely or partially destroyed primary and secondary residences, as well as agricultural and livestock operations and forest areas.
Saturday marked the report of the fourth death, that of Daniel Esteves, a 45-year-old Afocelca operative who suffered burns on 75% of his body while fighting the Sabugal fire.
The seriously injured forest firefighter, injured in a fire in Sabugal on Tuesday, died early this morning. He was 45 years old.
Portugal has activated the European Union Civil Protection Mechanism, under which it received five aircraft to assist in combating the fires.
According to provisional official data, by August 23, approximately 248,000 hectares have burned in the country, over 57,000 of which were in the fire that began in Arganil.
