The last individuals evacuated are being transported back to their homes via buses. “At this moment, everyone who was displaced has been given the order to return to their homes, and this relocation is being organized,” stated Rui Costa, the sub-regional commander of Vale do Ave of ANEPC.
On Wednesday night, Augusto Marinho, the mayor of Ponte da Barca, mentioned that about 150 people from Igreja in Britelo, Sobredo, Germil, and Lourido, in the Serra Amarela area of the Peneda-Gerês National Park, were evacuated for safety reasons.
“Currently, all villages have their security conditions ensured,” Commander Rui Costa addressed around 7:00 AM.
The wildfire in the municipality of Ponte da Barca (Viana do Castelo) has been active since Saturday and has spread to the neighboring municipality of Terras de Bouro (Braga).
According to Commander Rui Costa, as of 7:00 AM today, the fire continued with four active fronts, one of which “maintains a higher level of activity,” with aerial resources awaited on the ground.
“We are awaiting the arrival of aerial resources to consolidate and enhance our response capacity in these areas, where in some locations, efforts are being made with ground-based work,” he said.
Information from ANEPC’s official page indicates that this fire in Ponte da Barca mobilized 409 operatives supported by 142 ground resources as of 7:00 AM.
The same source reports that three other fires remain active in the country, in Penafiel (Porto), Arouca (Aveiro), and Cinfães (Viseu), being fought by 1,317 operatives and 443 ground resources.
The fires in Nisa (Portalegre) and Paredes (Porto) are in resolution phase, involving a total of 283 operatives and 93 resources.
