Ben Pawlowski
AT least seven people have died as scores of wildfires continue to rage in Portugal, forcing authorities to officially declare a ‘state of calamity’.
Over 100 separate blazes are continuing to burn uncontrollably between Lisbon and Porto – the fires have destroyed dozens of houses and tens of thousands of hectares of forest and scrubland, with the fumes of smoke produced even visible from space.
More than 5,000 firefighters are battling to contain the inferno, which has reached the Passadicos do Paiva, a set of famous wooden footbridges within the Unesco Arouca geopark.
At least eight kilometres of walkways have been destroyed, with fears mounting that the blaze could reach the park’s star attraction – ‘516 Arouca’, one of the longest pedestrian suspension bridges in the world.
Prime Minister Luis Montenegro announced a formal ‘state of calamity’ in a televised address on Wednesday, allowing him to invoke powers to mobilise additional firefighters to help the fight to put out the flames.
“We are well aware that these difficult hours are not over yet”, he told the public. “We have to continue to give everything we have and ask for help from our partners and friends so that we can reinforce the protection of our people and property”.
Authorities believe that the majority of the hundred-plus fires were started deliberately, with Montenegro calling for justice for the perpetrators. Police say they have arrested seven men accused of igniting the blazes.
Spain has lent its support to Portugal, sending 240 soldiers and vehicles from a specialist emergency fire brigade, alongside two water-dumping planes.
Some 85 kilometres from the Portuguese border in northwest Spain, locals reported seeing smoke and smelling burning wood.
Three civilians and four firefighters have died so far.
