In a telephone statement, José Requeijo, the deputy regional commander of Emergency and Civil Protection for the Douro Sub-Regional Command, indicated that if the winds do not change direction and operations continue as they are, there could be positive news by late afternoon.
“The scenario is promising,” he said.
The Alvite fire was being tackled this afternoon, at around 3:00 p.m., by 449 firefighters, 137 vehicles, and five aerial resources, according to data from the portal of the National Authority for Emergency and Civil Protection.
The blaze that broke out on Friday threatened homes overnight in the locality of Paraduça and again this morning in Alvite, but this afternoon no houses are at risk and the situation “is better compared to Friday,” noted João Silva, a director of the Moimenta da Beira firefighters.
Silva reported that more than a thousand daily meals are being distributed to firefighters and the community. “We have been preparing and delivering 500 meals for lunch and 500 for dinner.”
Many of the meals are packed in containers to be delivered to those battling the flames on the front line, Silva added.
“The population is assisting the firefighters with water tank trailers, as this area has a lot of livestock and many fruit farms, and these people have the tanks,” he explained, appealing for donations of drinks and energy bars to support those combating the flames who are growing weary.
According to the National Authority’s portal, another significant wildfire is raging in the brush in the area of Alvadia, Ribeira de Pena, in Alto Tâmega and Barroso, with 211 personnel, 67 vehicles, and five aerial resources fighting it.
The increase to the highest level of readiness will commence from midnight on Sunday and extend until 11:59 p.m. on the 12th, aimed at bolstering the pre-positioning of resources in anticipation of a “significant complexity” in the weather conditions during this period, stated the national commander of ANEPC.
