The Minister of Internal Administration, Maria Lúcia Amaral, announced on Sunday that the government has decided to “extend by another 48 hours” the state of alert due to ongoing wildfires. The initial deadline was set to end at 11:59 PM today.
“Difficult conditions still persist, very unfavorable conditions still persist,” the minister explained during a press conference at the headquarters of the National Authority for Emergency and Civil Protection (ANEPC) in Carnaxide.
“For this reason, the government has decided to extend the state of alert for another 48 hours, with everything this entails,” she announced.
During this period, the minister explained, the “requirement of readiness for all firefighting forces” remains in place along with the “continuation of all prohibitions,” including “slash-and-burn operations” and “the use of fireworks and other pyrotechnic devices.”
According to Maria Lúcia Amaral, the decision to prolong the state of alert was “made based on a proposal presented by technical experts.”
“Thus, the state of alert is renewed starting at 00:00 on August 18 and will continue until midnight of the following Tuesday, August 19,” she emphasized.
The minister also expressed, on behalf of herself and the entire government team, deep gratitude to everyone tirelessly fighting the fires and announced that the Canadair planes sent by Morocco will remain in Portugal until Wednesday.
“Our heartfelt thanks also to Morocco, our neighbor and friend, which has just allowed us to keep the two Canadair planes they lent us until Wednesday,” she said.
Portugal has been on high alert due to the risk of rural fires since August 2.
The country has been affected by multiple rural fires since July, mainly in the northern and central regions, in a context of high temperatures that prompted the declaration of the current state of alert, now extended until Tuesday.
The fires have resulted in one death and several injuries, mostly minor, and have destroyed homes, both primary and secondary, as well as agricultural and livestock farms and forest areas.
The latest update from the president of the Portuguese Firefighters League indicated that from the end of June until August 13, 112 firefighters were injured as they battled the flames. In recent days, the number has continued to rise.
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On Friday, Portugal activated the European Civil Protection Mechanism, under which two Fire Boss planes are expected to arrive on Monday to support firefighting efforts.
According to provisional official data, by Saturday, 139,000 hectares had burned, 17 times more than during the same period in 2024. Nearly half of this area was consumed in just two days this week.
[Updated at 19:27]
