This Thursday, the Interior Minister warned in Cadaval of rising temperatures and fire hazards over the weekend, as well as the need to avoid the use of fire.
“Between August 20 and 25, we will again have very high temperatures and periods of severe drought in the country, and therefore I issue an appeal that we again try to avoid the use of fire, whether for domestic, agricultural, forestry use or for agricultural or forestry use. technology,” José Luis Carneiro told reporters during a visit by the Minister of Defense to Serra do Montejunto, in the municipality of Cadaval, Lisbon region.
The official warned that about two-thirds of the fires this year are caused by careless fire handling.
“We are talking about the use of fire, more often for public gatherings, for domestic purposes, namely the burning of waste, cleaning, which is carried out in terms of agricultural practices, forest clearing or the use of agricultural and forestry equipment,” he specified.
Despite the refusal to sum up the results of the fires this year, José Luis Carneiro noted that “the Portuguese have shown great responsibility, since the proof is the fact that this year there are fewer fires than in 2022.”
“There were 120 fires in the first week of August, that’s a lot of fires, but we had years when the number was higher, and this is also the result of a collective awareness of individual responsibilities and collective responsibilities, namely in the care using fire engines, agricultural and forestry vehicles,” he gave an example.
In Serra do Montejunto, Minister of the Interior and Minister of Defense Helena Carreiras thanked and acknowledged the joint work of the armed forces in support of fire prevention and control.
According to data provided by the two ministries, 11,013 soldiers, 3,201 vehicles and 1,643 flying hours were involved in 3,149 missions in 2022.
Since the beginning of this year, the numbers point to 2,353 soldiers, 451 vehicles and 509 flying hours in 610 missions.
“Basically, we are talking about strengthening patrols and inspections with the participation of the Armed Forces and the forces of the PPR, which made it possible to increase efficiency, namely the detection of fires,” stressed José Luis Carneiro.
The Minister also added that the PPR carries out more than 200 patrols and 50 other units of the Armed Forces.
“The National Republican Guard has already made more than 50 arrests and is tracking more than 700 identifications (of arson suspects),” José Luis Carneiro said.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
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