The fire in Vouzela is the main concern, with about 1,100 personnel on the ground. The blaze is still spreading as the country is under a red heat alert.
The heat shows no sign of easing, and neither do the first major wildfires of the season. At 18:00 this Friday, six fires were burning in Portugal. To respond to these incidents, more than 1,500 personnel were on the ground, supported by around 500 vehicles and 25 aircraft.
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This situation led the Portuguese government to activate, on Friday, the European Civil Protection Mechanism, as well as bilateral agreements in place with Spain and Morocco.
The main concern is the wildfire in the municipality of Vouzela, in the district of Viseu, which broke out in the early hours of Thursday. The blaze has several active fronts and continues to spread, fuelled by the high temperatures and some wind.
According to information on the Civil Protection website, at 18:00 about 1,100 firefighters and other responders were battling the flames, backed by around 360 ground vehicles and eleven aircraft.
The National Authority for Civil Protection (ANPC) told the Lusa news agency in the morning that the fire is threatening homes and has already forced the suspension of services on the Vouga railway line between Mourisca do Vouga and Águeda. At least seven people have been injured, the ANPC said.
In addition to Vouzela, the flames have spread to three other municipalities: Oliveira de Frades, Águeda and Tondela. In the latter, two villages have been partially evacuated as a precaution.
According to data from the European Forest Fire Information System (source in Portuguese)(EFFIS), consulted by Euronews at 14:00, the fire has already burned more than 11,000 hectares of land.
Besides Vouzela, a wildfire in Barcelos, which at 18:00 had mobilised 92 personnel and dozens of vehicles, had several active fronts that were starting to give way to the resources deployed on the ground, a Civil Protection source told Lusa.
Alongside these two blazes, another significant fire in Cinfães has brought in around 80 personnel, dozens of vehicles and one aircraft.
Interior minister points to possible arson in Vouzela fire
The minister for internal administration says the large wildfire, which ignited during the night, may have a criminal origin.
"You don’t normally have conditions at night for fires to start, and yet there were two ignitions at around 02:00, 03:00 in the morning," Luís Neves told journalists in Torres Novas, adding that "everything suggests there was human involvement, criminal behaviour".
The minister said the "country is prepared" to fight the fires, stressing that the situation in that municipality in the district of Viseu is particularly sensitive because of the size of the fire and the number of active fronts.
Speaking in Toronto, Prime Minister Luís Montenegro said the country "is getting ready" to tackle the wildfires and the difficult season ahead, and insisted that all available capacity is being used.
Portugal in the red: mainland at maximum wildfire risk
Almost all Portuguese territory is under a warning for maximum or very high rural fire danger, according to the Portuguese Institute for Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA). Only six coastal districts are at moderate risk.
The government declared a state of alert yesterday, in force from 00:00 today until 23:59 on Monday, due to the "significant worsening of the risk of rural fires". IPMA notes that the restrictions laid down in the government’s alert notice override those set out in the rural fire danger classes.
Among the exceptional measures are a ban on entering, driving through or staying inside forest areas, and a ban on using fireworks or other pyrotechnic devices. Burning and certain types of work in forest and rural areas are also prohibited. The alert also entails reinforcing surveillance and the level of readiness of the authorities, notably the GNR and PSP.
The country is in the grip of an intense heatwave, with temperatures exceeding 40 degrees in some regions. Nights are also expected to be very hot, with minimum temperatures above 20 degrees and very low humidity levels.
IPMA has placed 13 mainland districts under a red alert, the most severe level, because of the heat. Bragança, Faro, Guarda, Vila Real and Viseu are under an orange alert.
