Most Portuguese newspapers continue to feature wildfires on their front pages, as this is the worst year for wildfires in Portugal’s history.
It has been announced that an extraordinary debate on wildfires will be held in the Portuguese parliament next week.
More areas have been burnt across the country than ever before, with the destruction helped at times by strong winds, low humidity, and always because of parched earth due to a lack of rain.
So far, 261,000 hectares (645,000 acres) have been destroyed this year compared to 143,000 hectares (353,000 acres) last year.
This week a third man died and at least 15 others were injured – one critically – while fighting different blazes The latest man killed was working for a company hired to help the northwastern municipality of Mirandela The injured men were battling fires near the city of Setubal, about 50 km south of the capital Lisbon where two water-bombing aircraft sent by Sweden were operating. These aircraft and further foreign assistance have been deployed by the European Civil Protection Agency.
By mid-week, the four fiercest wildfires were still in the north and central parts of the country and occupying the attention of more than 2,000 ground firefighters and about 20 aircraft.
The situation has also been extremely serious in neighbouring Spain, as well as France Turkey and the Balkans, though hopes are now rising that temperatures seem to be cooling after weeks of extreme heat.
While it is thought that lightning strikes may have sparked some wildfires in Iberia, arsonists are strongly suspected.
Meteorologists say that heat extremes are becoming more intensive and common because of human-induced climate change.
Written by Len Port - Photo courtesy of Depositphotos.com
