The fire that began on August 13 in Arganil and has spread to three municipalities in the Castelo Branco district (Castelo Branco, Fundão, and Covilhã) was the largest operation on the ground with 1,604 personnel and 548 vehicles, according to the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANEPC).
The worsening and intensity of the fire front that reached Covilhã municipality on Thursday led to a lockdown in Unhais da Serra, Cortes de Baixo, and Cortes do Meio, as announced by the municipality of Castelo Branco district at 8:30 PM.
The fire that began Wednesday afternoon in Cinco Vilas, in Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo, and spread along the banks of the Côa River to Almeida and Pinhel municipalities was fought by 265 personnel with 80 ground means by 12:30 AM today.
Almeida’s Mayor, António José Machado, emphasized on Thursday night that the fire in his municipality had been burning intensely since the early afternoon after crossing the Côa River valley.
In the afternoon, a firefighter from the Pinhel unit was seriously injured when the vehicle he was driving was engulfed by flames in Valverde, Almeida municipality.
The 45-year-old volunteer suffered severe burns and was airlifted by the National Institute of Medical Emergency helicopter to Coimbra Hospitals.
Although resolved, the fires in Sabugal, in the Guarda district, still mobilized 192 personnel and 58 ground means, and the fire in Sátão, Viseu district, had 48 personnel and 15 vehicles on-site, as noted on the ANEPC website.
Continental Portugal has been affected by multiple large rural fires since July, particularly in the North and Center regions.
The fires have resulted in three fatalities, including a firefighter, and several injuries, some serious, destroying or partially damaging primary and secondary homes, as well as agricultural, livestock, and forest areas.
Portugal activated the European Civil Protection Mechanism, under which it currently has two Fire Boss planes, and two more Canadair planes are expected to arrive today.
According to provisional official data, by August 21, 234,000 hectares have burned in the country, over 53,000 of which were in the fire that started in Arganil.
