Eleven days into its latest bout of wildfires, Portugal is mourning a fourth victim as firefighters respond to the ever-evolving threat, according to multiple media reports.
The Portuguese National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANEPC) has been combating blazes in Piódão in central Portugal (where more than 57,000 hectares burned, spreading to several neighbouring municipalities) and three ongoing fires in the northern districts of Braga (Cervães and Alvite e Passos) and neighbouring Vila Real (Paradela de Guiães). There have also been active fronts burning in the Vila Real municipality of Sabrosa.
A firefighter responding to the outbreak in Cervães on Sunday afternoon suffered severe injuries, Jornal Notícias reporting that the 21-year-old was transported to the hospital in Braga.
Several people have meanwhile been hospitalised with serious injuries caused by the fires. One, Daniel Esteves, died Saturday morning. The 45-year-old employee of a private firefighting company sustained severe burns to 75 percent of his body while fighting the Sabugal blaze on Tuesday. Esteves marks the fourth death from the fires.
[See more: Fuelled by climate change, wildfires are sweeping across Europe]
Provisional data shows that, as of 23 August, around 248,000 hectares have burned across Portugal, more than a fifth in the Arganil district blaze alone. Homes, farms, livestock and forestry areas have all been casualties.
Mainland Portugal, particularly the north and central regions, have suffered numerous large rural fires since July, fuelled by soaring temperatures, dry conditions and high winds.
Fire risk remains at a high or very high level in several municipalities, even as forecasts predict a slight drop in maximum temperatures and possibility of light rain in certain areas.
While parts of the country are expected to see winds recede, high winds are impeding firefighting efforts in Sabrosa, which added 32 personnel and 11 vehicles to its fighting force over the course of Sunday. No villages are currently threatened but resources are prepared to evacuate inhabitants “if necessary,” Mayor Helena Lapa told the Portuguese news agency Lusa.
