The fire that tore through a forest area to the north east of Messines was declared 'over and out' early this morning after a night of heroic struggle to contain and quench the flames.
The blaze led to the evacuation of 49 people whose homes were threatened by the fire which started on Monday afternoon and led to a pall of smoke over much of the central Algarve region.
A total of 369 people were involved in the firefighting operation with 112 vehicles and at its height, four specialist helicopters dumping water.
Despite the evacuations, nobody was injured and only a few outbuildings and ruins were burnt - all homes were saved.
Ricardo Marquês, the operational commander, said that "the night work had the desired effect - the fire-fighters overcame the blaze in the early hours on Tuesday morning."
A helicopter is still being used to make the area safe and sufficient firemen will remain on site today to check there are no re-ignition points.
A reduction in the baking temperature over the next few days will help redcue the liklihood of further incidents - a less punishing 30°C to 33°C is predicted by the weather service.
The fire a Perna Seca consumed eucalyptus and pine forestand the Algarve firefighters were helped out by colleagues from Beja in the Alentejo as well as a team from Lisbon.
All eyes are on Messines at the moment as it is the only municipality at 'maximum risk' of fire, the remaining municipalities are at a 'very high risk of fire.'
