“On this date that we shall never forget, I could not fail to send you a heartfelt hug in memory of all the victims of June 17, your families, your friends, your neighbors”, stated Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa in a message to the Associação de Vítimas de Incêndio de Pedrógão Grande (AVIPG).
Noting that AVIPG has organized a gathering at the Memorial for the Victims of the 2017 Fires, the Head of State mentioned that it is not always possible for him to physically join the moment, but he is with everyone in spirit.
“As this is the last June 17 of my term, I wanted to issue a warning that the engagement around the association remains strong and does not yield to possible changes in cycle or leadership,” he noted.
The President of the Republic emphasized that “the work done, the commitment to reconstruction and the maintenance of memory cannot come to an end.”
Concluding his message, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa assured that “June 17 is a date that we shall never forget.”
The fires that broke out on June 17, 2017, in Pedrógão Grande and spread to neighboring municipalities resulted in the death of 66 people and injured 253 others, seven of them gravely. The blazes destroyed approximately 500 homes and 50 businesses.
