The fire is believed to have started in an area known as Vale da Junca, in Várzea dos Cavaleiros, within the municipality of Castelo Branco. According to Pedro Nunes, the Sub-regional Emergency and Civil Protection Commander for Beira Baixa, the fire is now under control.
“At this moment, we need to conduct the mop-up operations and are working with track machines to ensure a discontinuity line, a defensive line throughout the affected area,” stated Pedro Nunes in a statement to the Lusa agency.
The Sub-regional Emergency and Civil Protection Commander for Beira Baixa reported that the on-site teams are now “cooling down the entire perimeter, working with machines, and conducting the mop-up operations.”
Around 5:00 PM, Pedro Nunes indicated that the meteorological conditions were unfavorable due to the high temperatures being recorded, but efforts were underway on the ground to combat the flames.
“We are developing a strategy to flank the fire to weaken it at the head,” he described at the time, seeking to understand if the fire would yield to the adopted method, which was eventually successful.
According to the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority’s website, by 6:05 PM, 251 operatives and 68 vehicles were mobilized for the incident, supported by nine aerial units.
