Around 70 people have had to be evacuated and at least five properties, including primary homes, have been damaged by flames in different rural fires that broke out between Sunday and today in the North and Centre regions, according to Civil Protection.

In a press conference at the headquarters of the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANEPC), in the municipality of Oeiras (Lisbon district), at 1:00 pm, the national Emergency and Civil Protection commander, André Fernandes, indicated that evacuations were recorded in the fires of Oliveira de Azeméis, Sever do Vouga and Cabeceiras de Basto, and have “gone as expected”, with the collaboration of the populations.

Noting that the damage count disclosed in this briefing may need to be updated, the official indicated that, in Sever do Vouga, a house and an agricultural annex burned down, in Cabeceiras de Basto a house and, in another fire, in Albergaria-a-Velha, a rural tourism establishment and, partially, a house.

After a firefighter assigned to fight the fire in Oliveira de Azeméis died of sudden illness on Sunday night, the authority reported, at this point in time until 1:00 pm, there have been a total of 17 more victims in the fires since Friday, all civil protection agents – two seriously injured, nine slightly injured and six firefighters assisted.

According to the mayor of Albergaria-a-Velha (Aveiro), the fire in the municipality caused injuries to four civilians who were trying to put out the fires in their homes and one of them “is quite serious”.

In this municipality, 20 houses were also affected by the fire, in addition to vehicles, two warehouses, an office, and several people were left homeless, the mayor updated at around 2:45 pm.

The flames forced traffic closures on the A25, A1 (in both directions between Coimbra Norte and Vila Nova de Gaia), A29, A17 and A32 motorways and on the Complementary Itinerary (IC) 2. Civil Protection urged drivers to avoid these roads and, in the case of the Aveiro district, to opt for routes “closer to the interior”.

“The situation is not out of control. The situation is very complex”, summed up the national commander, stressing that it is necessary to reduce the number of fires, which mainly affect the North and Centre regions.

“It will be a complicated day, tomorrow [Tuesday] too, hence the importance of continuing to reduce the number of fires”, he added.

By 1:00 p.m., around 3,500 emergency responders were directly involved in the relief efforts.

André Fernandes said that the emergency plans for the district of Aveiro and the municipalities of Albergaria-a-Velha, Águeda, Sever do Vouga and Oliveira de Azeméis had been activated, but in the meantime, the municipal plan for Aveiro had also been activated, according to a statement from the council.

Between midnight and 12:00 p.m. today, 92 rural fires were recorded on the Portuguese mainland, after 173 on Sunday.

At the beginning of the afternoon today, according to the national commander, there were 36 rural fires underway on the Portuguese mainland, with 32 aerial resources being activated.

Given the accumulation of ignitions, the official said, “some change in air quality is already noticeable”, which is why the Directorate-General for Health recommends the use of masks in areas with smoke.

Meanwhile, a source from the Ministry of Internal Affairs told Lusa that two aircraft from Spain are arriving in Portugal today to help fight the fires raging in the country under the European Civil Protection Mechanism.

In addition to these two heavy aircraft from Spain, two other aircraft from France are also expected to arrive in Portugal, according to the MAI.

A source from the Civil Protection Department told Lusa that Italy and Greece have also expressed their willingness to support Portugal, with two Canadian aircraft each, bringing the total number of aircraft that can arrive in Portugal through the European Mechanism to eight.

According to the Civil Protection Department, the national company, made up of fire brigades from the Lisbon and Tagus Valley regions, was also called in this morning to combat the fires in Oliveira de Azeméis and Albergaria.