A wildfire in Sirarelhos, in the parish of Pena, Quintã and Vila Cova, municipality of Vila Real, currently has two active fronts being tackled by “224 firefighters, 63 vehicles, and seven aircraft,” as per data from the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority reported at 11:00 AM.
In a statement to Lusa, Miguel Fonseca, sub-regional commander of Emergency and Civil Protection for the Douro Sub-Regional Command, explained that there was a “reactivation” during the night, and this morning two fronts remain active.
One front is heading toward Vila Real, and the second, with “intensity,” is directed toward the municipality of Mondim de Basto, where villages, including Ermelo, were at risk but are “no longer in danger,” the commander assured.
Commander Miguel Fonseca mentioned the “work is progressing favorably.”
There is a second active brush fire in the north of Portugal, in Alvadia, municipality of Ribeira de Pena, district of Vila Real, also with two active fronts, but no houses are at risk, according to the Tâmega e Sousa Sub-Regional Command.
According to the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority’s data at 11:30 AM, 169 firefighters, with 57 vehicles and five aircraft, are battling the flames in Alvadia.
The third brush fire in Alvite, municipality of Moimenta da Beira, district of Viseu, which broke out on Friday and had two active fronts with nearly 500 firefighters battling the flames on Saturday, is now contained but still being fought by 432 firefighters, with 138 vehicles and two aircraft, according to the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority’s website at 11:23 AM.
In a statement to Lusa, José Requeijo, deputy sub-regional commander of Emergency and Civil Protection for the Douro Sub-Regional Command, indicated the firefighting operations in Alvite are “going well this morning,” “with the resources operating effectively.”
“We hope to have good news in the coming hours,” said José Requeijo, although he cautioned that the forecasted worsening of weather conditions for today could alter the positive outlook he anticipates.
He lamented that on Saturday there was also hope of containing the fire, but in the mid-afternoon, a “shift in the wind spoiled all the work done,” stated Commander José Requeijo.
The increase to the maximum readiness level from midnight today, extending until 11:59 PM on the 12th, anticipates a reinforcement of means in response to the expected “significant complexity” of the meteorological conditions during this period.
