By Euronews
Published on
ADVEReadNOWISEMENT
Portugal has entered the second day of a state of alert due to high temperatures, with 32 active fires and more than 1600 firefighters on the ground.
By early Monday morning, the situation seemed to have calmed down, but there were warnings of firefighter fatigue and suspicions of arson in what is shaping up to be a difficult week.
The greatest concentration of resources is in the district of Vila Real, in the north of the country, where there are at least five active fires. Four are in the final stages, with the exception of the fires in Sirarelhos (in the municipality of Chaves), where the flames are raging in three different parishes: Pena, Quintã and Vila Cova.
On Monday morning, Vila Real had the largest number of resources in the country: 364 firefighters and 121 land resources. At the beginning of Sunday evening, its mayor said that the firefighters were exhausted.
“There are a lot of people on the ground, but they are particularly exhausted,” Alexandre Favaios told reporters. “I think it’s necessary for resources to come in that are fresher, that have more attack capacity, because we’re going to have a particularly demanding night.”
Favaios also warned of ignitions at different times in different places, saying that “there are factors here that are certainly not due to the weather conditions”.
A suspect was also arrested in Vila Real after locals alerted the authorities when they saw the man in the vicinity of several fires, according to CNN Portugal.
In addition to Vila Real, the Ponto da Barca and Celorico de Bastos fires, also in the north of the country, are also concentrating more resources, each with more than 300 firefighters battling the flames.
Controversial fireworks
The state of alert in Portugal due to the high temperatures will last until Thursday. Until then, there are various restrictions, including the launching of fireworks, which is common during popular summer festivals.
In Marinhais, in the district of Santarém, one of the hottest areas in the country, the Festival Committee decided to circumvent the ban and launch the fireworks earlier than planned, half an hour before the alert came into force.
“The Marinhais 2025 Festivities Committee would like to inform you that the fireworks display planned for Saturday night will have to be brought forward to 11.30pm,” it said in a post on social media, adding that “the safety conditions are in place to carry out the display”.
The decision caused controversy in the media and on social networks. According to SIC Notícias, five fires broke out nearby. The fires were extinguished by the Salvaterra de Magos fire brigade.
The state of alert also imposes restrictions on travelling and staying in forest areas, working with machinery, and burning. Civil protection organisations, such as the fire brigade, should also be on alert.
The Portuguese Institute for the Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA) has issued a red warning of “extremely high temperatures” for the north of the country, where most of the fires are raging. In the rest of the country, most districts have an orange warning, and this Monday, maximum temperatures are expected to range between 29°C and 40°C.