The rural fire that broke out on Saturday in Odemira has already reached 10 thousand hectares, keeping early this evening two active fronts and forcing authorities to cover a perimeter of 50 kilometers, according to Civil Protection.
At a press conference held by 19:30 the command post installed in São Teotónio – parish where the fire broke out, in the area of Baiona -, the regional commander of Emergency and Civil Protection Algarve, Vitor Vaz Pinto, He explained that the northern front, in Odemira (Alentejo district of Beja), no serious problems.
The southern front presents two more worrying situations, at the intersection with the Algarve municipalities of Aljezur and Monchique (Faro district).
With the change in the wind quadrant registered in the late afternoon, the commander said, “the southern sector will be more demanding, also because the orography does not allow to place the air means where they are needed”.
Even so, and although the authorities recognize that there are variables that cannot be controlled, an increase in humidity is expected, which will be favorable to the fight.
“During the afternoon we had several reactivations that were promptly extinguished by the forces dispersed on the ground for more than 50 kilometers”, said the commander, stating that he had no indication of affected houses until that hour.
According to information this afternoon from the municipality of Aljezur, at least one house burned, in addition to small annexes and other buildings, and in Odemira the owner of a rural tourism told Lusa that the main structure of the accommodation was destroyed.
Vítor Vaz Pinto updated in the briefing the number of people displaced by the GNR in a preventive manner to 1,459 – many of whom were taken to the defined reception points – and said that 36 people, mostly civil protection agents, received assistance from the National Institute of Medical Emergency (INEM) on the ground.
Eight other people – five firefighters and three civilians – received hospital care, but did not have serious conditions.
